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News, highlights and events throughout the Americas

Fresh Off eMerge Win, Miami-Born HealthBird Is Creating A One-Stop-Shop For Healthcare Needs

The 100 startups presenting in eMerge Americas’ startup showcase may have come from around the world. But ultimately it was a local company – a health insurance startup called HealthBird – that took home the top investment prize of over $400,000: $250,000 of which was from Florida Funders, $120,000 from Panoramic Ventures, and $50,000 from eMerge Americas. The HealthBird team has tried to streamline the healthcare procurement process as much as possible. Users can apply in minutes and compare quotes from a wide range of health insurance providers. Once they have purchased a plan, users can manage their benefits right through the app. According to COO Irena Tigranyan, HealthBird will use the funds they won at eMerge Americas to hire more engineers and people to staff their member concierge team.

 

- Refresh Miami

MDC President Leverages Her City's Tech Boom To Embrace An AI-Centric Future

Miami Dade College President Madeline Pumariega has quietly culled millions of dollars in investments from city stakeholders, envisioning something big on the horizon. Now, as artificial intelligence begins to revolutionize the workforce and as Miami becomes the fastest-growing tech hub for venture capital investments post-pandemic, Pumariega’s school is well poised for a new era of student career success and faculty innovation. The school has received $15 million from various city authorities thanks to Pumariega’s vision to “elevate educational offerings to raise Miami’s talent base” in light of the migration of Silicon Valley investment, says Christina Crespi, executive director of Miami Downtown Development Authority, which donated $1 million. “She quickly approached us about assisting and we thought it was a great moment to put a stake in the ground for the future talent of Miami to be part of this sophisticated technology.”

 

-Source: University Business

FIU Student Uses Simulated Lunar Soil To 3D Print Out-Of-This-World Housing

NASA is working to build a research base on the moon to send the first astronauts to Mars. Along the way, a new industry is coming to life: construction on surfaces beyond Earth. This is where master’s student Brandon Aguiar ’21 is launching his promising career. Aguiar is advancing a 3D printing technique that makes durable structures out of lunar dust. He has produced igloos, building blocks and cubes with complex angles and curvatures. Essentially, Aguiar is researching a material that could be the backbone of interstellar engineering. Lunar dust is a powder consisting of tiny, irregularly shaped rocks. It covers the moon and can present a potential hazard for astronauts. In previous missions, the dust has eroded spacesuits and sensitive equipment.  Aguiar’s research would flip this hazard into an asset. Using a lunar dust simulant provided by NASA, he is working with a material that has approximately five times the hardness of mild steel. Now, the College of Engineering and Computing student is focusing on how to make his 3D-printed objects withstand all the perils of the moon, including radiation, asteroids and temperature swings.

 

-Source: South Florida Tech Hub

Ironhack Brings A Coding Bootcamp To Marlins' LoanDepot Park

The Miami Marlins are bringing coding bootcamps to the baseball park. The MLB team aims to help locals train for careers in technology through a new partnership with Ironhack, a Spain-based company that offers nine-week bootcamp trainings in web development, data analytics and UX/UI design. In March, the company chose Marlins home LoanDepot Park as the site of its flagship U.S. campus after spending years at the co-working space Building.co in Brickell. It was a deal that wouldn't have happened without the help of Miami's tech community, said Karina DuQuesne, Chief People Officer and general counsel at Ironhack. The company was forced to search for a new office last summer after Building.co sold the space, putting Ironhack on the move after more than seven years at the location. But the firm didn't want to relocate to a typical office. Instead, it was searching for a dynamic campus large enough to host trainings and community events for the local tech sector.

 

-Source: South Florida Business Journal

The Startup Grants You Can Apply For Right Now

While startup cash is becoming harder and harder to come by and VC deals continue to decline, entrepreneurs do have several options for grant funding and other equity-free forms of startup capital to help grow their businesses. Miami Inno has put together list of annual grant programs founders (and small business owners) can apply for today, or bookmark to catch the next open application cycle. In addition to the programs listed, the 2024 eMerge Americas Startup Showcase program will debut in the late fall 2023, and offers founders the opportunity to meet with investors during eMerge Americas and pitch for a chance to win over $400,000 in investments and prizes.

 

-Source: Miami Inno

A Curious Person's Guide To Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is everywhere. And the recent explosion of new AI technologies and tools has introduced many new terms that you need to know to understand it. The technology fuels virtual assistants, like Apple’s Siri, helps physicians to spot cancer in MRIs and allows your phone to recognize your face. Tools that generate content have reignited the field. Chatbots, like ChatGPT and Bard, write software code and chapter books. Voice tools can manipulate celebrities’ speech. Image generators can make hyper-realistic photos given just a bit of text. This groundbreaking technology has the potential to revolutionize entire industries, but even experts have trouble explaining how some tools work. And tech leaders disagree on whether these advances will bring a utopian future or a dangerous new reality, where truth is indecipherable from fiction.

 

-Source: The Washington Post

Women Founders + Funders Happy Hour

May 9th|Plain Sight

 

Join us for the 2nd Tuesday in May Women Founders + Funders Happy Hour at Tech Tuesdays Miami! This event series is designed to connect and empower women founders, funders, coders, creatives, and community builders in Miami tech (men can come too). Enjoy complimentary lite bites, an open bar, and a possibility to pitch your business.

The #MiamiTech Happy Hour

May 10th|Natalia Martinez-Kalinina + Chris Adamo

 

This is a casual recurring happy hour for new and old Miamians interested in connecting with fellow entrepreneurs, investors, tech folks, and a diverse group of awesome people. Come grab a drink and catch up!

Influencing Company Culture & Improving Mental Health

May 10th | 2023 Own Your Growth: Women’s Leadership Series

 

Join Gallagher for the Women’s Leadership Viewing Party on May 10 to commemorate Mental Health Awareness Month. We will all tune in to the second event of our 2023 Own Your Growth: Women’s Leadership Series, “Influencing Company Culture & Improving Mental Health,” where we have the opportunity to hear from a panel of female leaders as they guide us through a discussion on workplace culture and its impacts on mental health, as well as strategies to help you be an advocate for positive change. Guests will enjoy food and drinks with our panel discussion and an opportunity to interact with other business professionals.

Demo Day Celebration

May 10th | Techstars Miami

 

Techstars Miami invites you to their Demo Day Celebration to hear their founder's final pitches and have a special community celebration. The 2nd cohort includes 12 diverse early-stage founders across various industries such as fintech, healthtech, AI, fashion tech, and more! Founders from US & Latam will take the stage to share what they have achieved over the last few months in the program - you won't want to miss it!

Ironhack + eMerge Americas Community Impact Scholarship

Deadline: May 15th | Ironhack + eMerge Americas

 

Are you passionate about using technology and want to turn that passion into a career? We want to help you make that dream into a reality! This scholarship is designed for those who want to learn tech skills and build a career in technology in Miami, but may not have the financial means to pursue their dreams. Individuals who pass the application process will be awarded partial scholarships ranging from $2,500 to $6,500 to cover a portion of tuition costs for any of Ironhack’s US bootcamps. Apply for the Ironhack + eMergeAmericas Community Impact Scholarship today and join the in-demand tech industries.

Miami Tech Social

May 18th |BrainStation

 

Miami Tech Social is the definitive networking event for the local tech community. Make meaningful new connections over drinks in BrainStation's state-of-the-art campus in the heart of Wynwood. This event brings together the most dynamic professionals from the world of tech for great discussions and socializing. 

Intro Day Miami: Software Engineering + UX Design

May 20th |BrainStation

 

BrainStation's Intro Day is an immersive, one-day learning experience, designed to give aspiring software engineers and UX designers of all levels a chance to explore bootcamp learning. As a participant, you will participate in hands-on workshops to start practicing software engineering or UX design fundamentals and gain career insights from BrainStation's industry-expert hiring partners amd bootcamp alumni at Verizon, eMed, Kaseya, and more.

Levan Center Incubate Pitch Night

May 22nd |Alan B. Levan NSU Broward Center of Innovation

 

Join the Levan Center of Innovation and see the Incubate Program entrepreneurs pitch their startup. The pitch night also include a networking reception with the opportunity to meet the entrepreneurs.

Shift Conference

May 23rd |Infobip

 

Shift, one of Europe's most popular developer conferences, is coming to the USA. For the first time ever, Infobip's Shift Conference will cross the Atlantic and get even closer to the global tech community. Dear developers, software engineers, product owners, founders, startups, and all kinds of IT professionals and enthusiasts - we are here to Shift Your World.

Brickell Tech Tuesday

May 30th | Brickell Tech

 

Brickell Tech Tuesday has grown to be a staple for the local tech community. Do you spend time in github, jira, slack, figma, google drive, etc from your home or office in Brickell? Developers, founders, investors, designers, growth hackers, product experts. Meet others in the Miami Tech community without getting in a car.

Starting + Building A Career In Tech

June 8th |BrainStation

 

Connect with UX design, product management, and digital marketing experts at GameStop and Pigmento, explore in-demand skills and common career paths, and network with other ambitious professionals.

TEALS Volunteer Program

Recruiting Now | Microsoft Philanthropies TEALS Program  

 

TEALS is a Microsoft Philanthropies program looking for volunteer computer science professionals that wish to use their skills to inspire the coders and creators of tomorrow. Volunteering with TEALS helps to make a difference in our community and schools that stand to gain the most from computer science knowledge and expertise. Volunteers help TEALS provide high school students with equitable access to CS education and create a pathway to economic opportunity. 

Learning Engineering + Data (LEaD) Program

Rolling Applications | Millennium Management

 

Millennium is a large global alternative investment manager with a strong commitment to leveraging innovations in technology and data. As a member of our Miami based Learning Engineering and Data (LEaD) program, LEaD engineers can expect to get comprehensive training and work alongside technology mentors and leaders to develop and maintain applications and tools spanning front-office, middle-office and back-office functions in a dynamic and fast paced environment.

eMerge Americas  2222 Ponce de Leon Blvd  Miami  FL 

 

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