South Florida Tech HubSouth Florida Tech Hub

By Nikki Cabus

IMLS invests more than $31 Million in grants to museums across America including Ft. Lauderdale’s MODS

Read Time 5 Minutes

Just this month, The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) announced the Museum of Discovery and Science (MODS) in Fort Lauderdale as one of eight recipients of the 2023 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, the nation’s highest honor given to museums and libraries that make significant and exceptional contributions to their communities.

IMLS is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s libraries and museums. We advance, support, and empower America’s museums, libraries, and related organizations through grantmaking, research, and policy development. IMLS envisions a nation where individuals and communities have access to museums and libraries to learn from and be inspired by the trusted information, ideas, and stories they contain about our diverse natural and cultural heritage.

Over the past 29 years, the award has celebrated institutions that are making a difference for individuals, families and communities. This year’s grant awards total over a whopping $31 million for museums across the nation to improve services to their communities.

Through the agency’s largest competitive grant program, Museums for America, and its special initiatives, Museums Empowered and Inspire! Grants for Small Museums, a total of 218 projects were selected from 568 applications requesting $73,685,100. Institutions receiving awards are matching them with $46,546,077 in non-federal funds.

“It is a delight to announce the Museums for America grants for 2023 to an extraordinary group of Museums, Gardens, Zoos, and Aquariums. These funds will in turn put the riches of our cultural institutions in reach of so many of our communities,” said IMLS Director Crosby Kemper.

“The Museum welcomes individuals from all walks of life to visit, experience, connect, and discover inspiring science. MODS’ inclusivity and accessibility programs have a direct impact on the south Florida community, especially children.”

Crosby Kemper is the sixth director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. He was commissioned by the White House on January 24, 2020, following his confirmation by the United States Senate. IMLS, an independent government agency, is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s museums and libraries.

Founded in 1976 as the Discovery Center, today the Museum of Discovery & Science, or “MODS,” is at the forefront of science education, innovation and exploration. The mission of MODS is Connecting People to Inspiring Science. Through our mission, MODS elevates the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) in our lives, impacting more than 450,000 visitors annually.

The Museum embraces six enduring values: DISCOVERY through inquiry-based learning experiences; INCLUSIVITY in which equity and access are vital to success; COLLABORATION in pursuit of mission-based public and private partnerships; CREATIVITY where inspiration and innovation take flight; EDUCATION as an inspirational force for informal science; and VISITOR FOCUSED, fostering a warm and welcoming atmosphere with layers of learning. National recognition from IMLS is meaningful as it signifies the important role MODS has played not only in our region, but as a national leader in the museum field and a model for community engagement and social impact.

Selected from 30 national finalists, the 2023 National Medal for Museum and Library Service winners represent institutions that provide dynamic programming and services that exceed expected levels of service. Through their community outreach, these institutions bring about change that touches the lives of individuals and helps communities thrive.

“To be singled out by IMLS from among the many thousands of museums in the United States is a tribute to our dedicated leadership, outstanding staff, devoted volunteers, generous supporters, and visionary founders who all give of themselves to fulfill our mission. We are grateful to IMLS and this honor will inspire us to do more,” said Joseph P. Cox, president and CEO of MODS.

“MODS is committed to a mission of connecting people to inspiring science for children and adults of all ages and abilities. The Museum is a changemaker, a dynamic hub for STEM learning that builds connections of trust and belonging. Museums are more necessary than ever before as institutions of learning. Together, we foster understanding and change that leads to a more just and healthy future.”

The IMLS award was presented at a ceremony this summer in Washington, DC. The 2023 National Medal for Museum and Library Service Medal Winners are:

Libraries:

  • Kuskokwim Consortium Library (Bethel, AK)
  • LA County Library (Los Angeles, CA)
  • Long Branch Free Public Library (Long Branch, NJ)
  • Toledo Lucas County Public Library (Toledo, OH)

Museums:

  • Center of Science and Industry (COSI) (Columbus, OH)
  • Jim Gatchell Memorial Museum (Buffalo, WY)
  • Museum of Discovery and Science (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
  • Riverside Art Museum (Riverside, CA)

Additional programs funded by IMLS are Museums for AmericaMuseums Empowered, and Inspire! Grants for Small Museums.

MODS, was also recently awarded funds via the Museums for America grant for $240,500. This grant supports projects that strengthen the ability of individual museums to benefit the public by providing high-quality, inclusive learning experiences, maximizing resources to address community needs through partnerships and collaborations, and by preserving and providing access to the collections entrusted to their care. 122 projects were funded through this year’s Museums for America program.

The Museum of Discovery and Science in Fort Lauderdale, Florida will expand its STEMobile program, a mobile maker space program for early learners ages three to five and their caregivers and teachers. The program will serve 123 early learning centers in the 10 lowest-income zip codes in Broward County that are also the most affected by intergenerational poverty, economic immobility, and lowest educational attainment levels. The project will provide interactive STEM experiences for young children aligned with Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards; a Family Science Night that reinforces the caregiver’s role as their child’s first teacher; and professional development resources that empower teachers to feel more confident about teaching STEM. The project will help reduce disparities in education for vulnerable young learners and help them succeed.

To learn more about MODS, visit https://mods.org/

By Nikki Cabus

Ft. Lauderdale’s FIT:MATCH honored as high impact tech startup in the international The Lead 100 List 2023

Read Time 5 Minutes

The Leading 100 List 2023, the highly anticipated international annual research list recognizing innovative tech start-ups driving the future of brand-to-consumer has been announced and the local Ft. Lauderdale-based FIT:MATCH has made the list.

FIT:MATCH is a ‘Digital Twin Matching Platform’ for B2B apparel brands enabling them to match their customers with the best-fitting products. The company’s patented algorithms derive a shopper’s 3D body shape, or “digital twin,’ using augmented reality and LIDAR-powered devices, to make personalized product recommendations in hard to fit categories. FIT:MATCH is designed to eliminate brands’ and consumers’ questions about fit in order to drive conversion and loyalty, while reducing returns.

The Leading 100 List, produced by The Lead, recognizes high impact technology start-ups that are transforming the direct-to-consumer business model and driving business value for brands as well as retailers. These young companies are venture capital funded and predominantly in their seed or series A round of financing. The Leading 100 companies are solving business problems, powering growth, and helping brands deliver on customer expectations through innovative, accessible, and powerful technology solutions. All companies were vetted and selected using a rigorous methodology which measured Innovation, Business Impact, Commercialization & Customers, Teams & Experience, Competition, Media Buzz, and Investor Value Creation. Company data was collected via a combination of CEO interviews, company nomination data, and publicly available market data.

FIT:MATCH, the digital twin platform, recently partnered with disruptor brand Savage X Fenty, in collaboration with Intel to launch the next generation of its award-winning, patented body shape technology. The product, dubbed Fit Xperience, gives shoppers the opportunity to get scanned in an in-store fitting room using Intel’s RealSense technology and the Intel Distribution of OpenVINO toolkit.

Within seconds, customers are matched with the best-fitting Savage X styles based on their exact body shape. This first-of-its-kind experience is available exclusively at Savage X Fenty retail stores, debuted at its new Lenox Square Mall location in Atlanta, Georgia in February.

This new experience weaves together augmented reality, computer vision and artificial intelligence, creating a re-imagined in-store fitting room experience. Shoppers who take part in Fit Xperience step into the fitting room where Intel RealSense depth sensors create an anonymized avatar based on their exact body shape. The technology then compares the shopper’s body to the database of digital twins (bodies that have been scanned previously), and – with an AI assist from Intel OpenVINO – recommends the best-fitting products to the shopper. By using depth sensors, and not cameras, to generate a mapping of a shoppers’ shape, FIT:MATCH has ensured the entire experience is both safe and private, with no videos and pictures taken or stored. The process is also extremely fast — it takes less than 30 seconds from beginning to end — saving time, both for the shoppers and the store associates.

Savage X Fenty closed a strategic investment in FIT:MATCH last year to accelerate expansion of the AR-powered technology, which solves the fit challenge that has long plagued brands and consumers by utilizing body shape data rather than just standard measurements.

This is the type of “high impact technology” that The Lead is looking for in their startups honored in The Lead 100 List 2023.

“Capitalizing on the learnings from the initial Fit Xperience rollout, we wanted to take the entire experience to the next level. This new product leverages Intel’s RealSense technology, as well as OpenVINO software to deliver a powerful, fast, and immersive shopping experience,” said Haniff Brown, Founder and CEO of FIT:MATCH. “We truly believe this is the most frictionless in-store fitting experience on the market.”

Companies from across the value chain all around the world — including marketing, ecommerce, customer experience, stores, data, AI, last mile, checkouts and payments, sustainability, merchandising, and Web3 — were nominated & considered. All companies were vetted and selected using a rigorous methodology which measures Innovation, Business Impact, Commercialization & Customers, Teams and Experience, Competition, Media Buzz, and Investor Value Creation. The selection committee, led by The Lead’s Chief Content Officer, Sonal Gandhi, conducted the analysis and final selection.

“The pace of change in the fashion, beauty and consumer industries has become dizzyingly fast, even for the industry leaders,” says Gandhi. “The companies selected for The Leading 100 list represent some of the best examples of how technology innovation is helping address the needs of this rapidly evolving business environment. Some are helping brands get the best out of the latest advances in powerful technologies such as AI, while others are creating solutions to optimize efficiency and productivity across the value chain.”

The Leading 100 List of 2023 is presented in partnership with RILA, NYFTL, XRC Ventures, Plug & Play, The Robin Report, and SUBTA. The Leading 100 Selection Committee includes: Pano Anthos, Founder & Managing Director, XRC Ventures; Jackie Trebilcock, Managing Director, New York Fashion Tech Lab; Nicholas Ahrens, Senior Vice President of Strategy, Innovation & Content, RILA; Nick Reasner, Director, Innovation & Customer Experience, Simon Property Group; Chip Korn, Partner & Co-chair, Emerging Company & Venture Capital Practice Group, Foley Hoag; Ken Pilot, Founder, Ken Pilot Ventures; Will Decker, Head of Brand & Retail, Plug & Play Tech Center; Christine Russo, Principal, RCC Agency; Tom Barbaro, Co-Founder, Cogent; Juan Mejia, Managing Director, BrightTower; Ian McGarrigle, Chairman, World Retail Congress; and Robin Lewis, Founder & CEO, The Robin Report.

“At XRC Ventures, we are excited about new technologies that empower brands and retailers to innovate,” says XRC Ventures Founder & Managing Director, Pano Anthos. “The Leading 100 List includes startups that are doing just that by developing and leveraging new approaches in AI applications, spatial intelligence, supply chain redesign, sustainably-focused methods, and more. I look forward to seeing these startups help lead our industry into the future.”

The Leading 100 will be honored at The Lead Innovation Summit on July 12th & 13th, The Lead’s flagship event where the entire fashion, beauty, home, CPG, food, beverage, health, wellness, and retail innovation community will converge to engage the future of the direct-to-consumer business model. The annual event will bring together executives from enterprise brands and retailers, challenger DTC brands, innovative unicorns, technology start-ups, enterprise technology, investors, dealmakers, analysts, and stakeholders that comprise The Lead’s network.

 

 

The Leading 100 List of 2023

Accrue Savings
Adentro
Alloy Automation
Anvyl
Archive Resale
Archive.com
Breinify
Browzwear
buywith
Canal
Carro
Catch
Checkmate
Chord
Cogsy
Constructor.io
Crossing Minds
Curated for You
Cymbio
Daasity
DataMilk
Disco
Drop
EcoCart
EON
Factored Quality
Fairing
Feel
Fermat
Fillogic
FIT:MATCH.ai
FlagshipRTL
FloorFound
Floship
Fondue
Fuse Inventory
Hang.xyz
Haus Analytics
Hexa 3D
Howl Technologies
Humankind
Intelligems
Kahoona
KERV
Kevel
Leap
Lexer
Lily AI
Link Money
LiquiDonate
 Loop
Maropost
MasonHub
Measured
Northbeam
Nostra.ai
Novel
Obsess
Okendo
Osa Commerce
Outerspace
Pairzon
Pandion
Pathr.ai
Pipe 17
Postscript
Quorso
Radar
Rebuy
Recurate
ReFundid
Retention.com
RevLifter
Revuze
Rutter
Seek.AI
Shoppinggives
Skipify
Smartrr
SoundCommerce
Sparkplug
Storyblok
SuperCircle
Superfiliate
Syrup Tech
Tapcart
Thankful.Ai
Toki
Toolio
Tracer
Treat.xyz
Triple Whale
Try your best
TryNow
Vizit
Vntana
Vyrill
Wizard
Yogi
ZMO.AI
IMLS invests more than $31 Million in grants to museums across America including Ft. Lauderdale’s MODS
Ft. Lauderdale’s FIT:MATCH honored as high impact tech startup in the international The Lead 100 List 2023