South Florida Tech HubSouth Florida Tech Hub
03
Mar, 2024

By Nikki Cabus

Gary Vaynerchuk is coming to West Palm Beach as keynote for PBSC Foundation STEAM luncheon

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One of the leading global minds on innovation and technology, Gary Vaynerchuk will be coming to West Palm Beach in April!

Gary Vaynerchuk or “GaryVee” as he is known will be the keynote speaker at Palm Beach State College Foundation’s Yvonne S. Boice STEAM Luncheon on Tuesday, April 16th from 11:30 am – 1:30 pm. He will share his insights on how to bring your brand to the forefront with people and technology.

Presented by Bank of America, the event will be held at the beautiful Kravis Center for Performing Arts Cohen Pavilion in West Palm Beach. Other sponsors of the event include South Florida Tech Hub and the Palm Beach Post.

The mission of the Foundation at Palm Beach State College is to seek philanthropic gifts and partnerships to further initiatives and opportunities that transform students’ lives and impact the economic and cultural prosperity of the community.

Today’s Foundation for Palm Beach State is defined by relationships – the ones that bring partners, friends and donors committed to the students they serve and the community we share. The Foundation provides value to the College by expanding awareness of and engagement in Palm Beach State while accepting, stewarding and distributing philanthropic gifts in accordance with donors’ wishes.

After a three-year hiatus from 2021-23 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the signature event aims to increase scholarships, business partnerships and internship opportunities to support students pursuing science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics fields.

“GaryVee is a globally respected and admired leader and one of the most forward thinkers in business,” said PBSC President Ava L. Parker, J.D.

“His participation in our STEAM Luncheon will help amplify our initiatives to educate our students in critical STEAM fields and support the STEAM employers in our area.”

Keynote speaker, Gary Vaynerchuk is a serial entrepreneur, prolific angel investor, international social media influencer, and is considered one of the leading global minds on what’s next in culture, relevance and the internet. He is described as one of the most forward thinkers in business – he acutely recognizes trends and patterns early to help others understand how these shifts impact consumer behavior. Whether it’s emerging artists, esports, NFT investing, or digital communications, Gary understands how to bring brand relevance to the forefront.

GaryVee is the Chairman of VaynerX, the CEO of VaynerMedia, and the Creator & CEO of VeeFriends. Through VaynerMedia, a full-service advertising agency, he helps Fortune 1000 brands leverage consumer attention. VaynerMedia is part of the VaynerX holding company, including Eva Nosidam Productions, Vayner3, Gallery Media Group, The Sasha Group, VaynerSpeakers, and VaynerCommerce.

GaryVee is also prolific angel investor with early investments in companies such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumbler, Venmo, Snapchat, Coinbvase, and Uber. He is also the co-founder of VaynerSports, Resy and Empathy Wines. He guided both Resy and Empathy to successful exits – which were sold respectively to American Express and Constellation Brands. He is also a board member at Candy Digital, co-founder of VCR Group, co-founder of ArtOfficial, and co-founder of VaynerWATT.

GaryVee also documents his life daily as a CEO through his social media channels, which have more than 44 million followers and garnish over 173 million monthly impressions/views across all platforms. In addition, Vee was recently named to the Fortune list of the Top 50 Influential people in the NFT industry.

“We are thrilled to welcome Mr. Vaynerchuk as his expertise with today’s cutting-edge technologies and passion for entrepreneurship complements Palm Beach State’s advancements in these areas,” said David Rutherford, vice president of Institutional Advancement and CEO of the Foundation for PBSC.

“As the College has become a leader in innovation and educational technology, it is very fitting to have a pioneer of his magnitude to reignite Palm Beach State’s signature event.”

The annual luncheon will honor the philanthropic legacy of the College’s late friend, STEAM chair and respected pillar in the community Yvonne S. Boice, who passed away last year. According to an article on the National Trust for Humanities website, “Boice’s years of service and dedication to her numerous arts, cultural and humanities endeavors was recognized across academia and the U.S. government.”

“Boice led national and local fundraising efforts—chairing initiatives ranging from the Trust to Palm Beach State College’s STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) efforts and community space improvements. Boice served as Chair of the Palm Beach International Film Festival, Vice-Chair of the Centre for the Arts at Mizner Park, Chair of the board of overseers of Lynn University and was a long-time supporter of Palm Beach Community College. She also served as a board member of the YMCA of Boca Raton and South Palm Beach County. In recognition of her work, she was honored with many prestigious awards and two honorary doctorate degrees.”

In 2013, Palm Beach State College launched a major initiative to impact a projected shortage of skilled professionals in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) related fields. STEAM scholarships position students for high-paying, high-demand jobs that further their economic mobility and the local workforce.Now named for our dearly departed friend, inspiration and STEAM chairperson, The Yvonne S. Boice STEAM Luncheon honors her memory and welcomes Mr. Gary Vaynerchuk.

If you would like to be a part of the Tech Hub table at the event, please email team@techhubsouthflorida.org

To purchase individual tickets please visit, www.palmbeachstate.edu/foundation/steam.

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25
Oct, 2023

By Nikki Cabus

Team Llamaa wins Tech Hub’s “Hack for Humanity” community hackathon 2023

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The 2023 Tech Hub Hackathon aimed to “Hack for Humanity” building solutions for problems faced by two of South Florida’s local nonprofits, American Cancer Society and Habitat for Humanity Broward. 

A Hackathon is an overnight event where participants form teams, vet ideas, create a project, then present their work to an expert panel of judges. This year, teams were asked to solve a wide range of problems, including streamlining donations, coordinating pickups, improving data management for Habitat for Humanity Broward, and promoting American Cancer Society’s “Get Screened” campaign to individuals and corporations, with a focus on HR benefit integration and process monitoring.

This year’s first place winning team created a solution in support of Habitat for Humanity Broward – Team LLAMAA!

According to the Habitat for Humanity Broward website, Broward is one of the nation’s most cost burdened housing markets, making homeownership out of reach for 94% of families. Habitat for Humanity Broward is on a mission to change that.

Founded in 1976, Habitat for Humanity of Broward brings people together to build homes, communities and hope. Habitat Broward offers a “hand up” not a “hand out” to empower families who are willing to work hard to improve their family’s lives through affordable home ownership.

Together, Team LLAMAA which is an acronym for the first letters of each team members name; Leon, Lia, Ashley, Maria, Ashley, Aimee, created a software solution to aid the non-profit Habitat for Humanity of Broward which aimed to streamline the potential home owner application through digitization enabling tracking in a more convenient way for the employees, hard-skill volunteers and potential home owners.

“There is nothing like being in the presence of bright minds, tirelessly and enthusiastically working to increase the reach and impact for organizations like Habitat for Humanity of Broward and American Cancer Society who are tackling community and societal challenges,” said Nathan VanDeman, Habitat for Humanity Broward’s VP of Housing Development.

“I made many new friends, saw numerous great concepts and we’re excited to work over the coming weeks with the teams and organizers to see which can be developed and put to use.”

The Hackathon was held at the CITY Furniture headquarters in Tamarac where guests had the opportunity to tour the CITY facilities, meet with leadership and the technical team, and learn about the expansive and fast-growing tech department at CITY, all while enjoy the first-ever hackathon in CITY’s history working with two of their closest nonprofit partners.

With 16 teams presenting, over 100 hackers, and over 50 volunteers, coaches, and judges, there were many innovative ideas and projects created that could support both nonprofits.

Our judges panel included Mick Feller, Sr. Principal Software Engineer @ ODP Corp, Giovanni Punzo, Founder & CEO @ Streann Media, Michelle Bakels, Program Director @ G2i, Christy Poe, former Sr. VP of IT @ Garden of Life, Nathan VanDeman, Habitat for Humanity Broward’s VP of Housing Development, and Stephanie Watts, American Cancer Society’s Senior Director, Corporate Relations.

Thank you to all our major sponsors for the event. We would not have been able to make it happen without the support of CITY Furniture, The ODP Corporation (Office Depot), Florida Power & Light (FPL), OZ Digital, Streann Media, TechStrong Group, and Adam & Joe’s.

We also had the support of student sponsors this year from Cox Science center & Aquarium, CareerSource Palm Beach County, FAU’s College of Engineering & Computer Science, and the Tech Hub Foundation.

 

The top three projects chosen by our esteemed panel of judges were as follows:

1ST PLACE, $2,500 PRIZE: TEAM LLAMAA

  • Nonprofit: Habitat for Humanity Broward
  • Solution: On-boarding platform to support administrators in managing housing applications and their progress
  • Team Members: Ashley N Dennis, Asiangel Moua, Leon Kipkoech, Aimee Gonzalez-Cameron, Maria Bruno, Ashley Clayden Moss
  • See Presentation
  • See Github

2ND PLACE, $1,500 PRIZE: PIXEL POETS

  • Nonprofit: American Cancer Society
  • Solution: Custom Campaign Portal for “Get Screened” Campaign
  • Team Members: Shashank Mishra, Prakash Raghothamachar, Jasmine Kloub, Ryan Young
  • See Presentation
  • See Github

3RD PLACE, $1,000 PRIZE: ASK ME LATER

  • Nonprofit: Habitat for Humanity Broward
  • Solution: Donation quality inspection and intake process optimization
  • Team Members: Pinak Upadhyay, Angel Diaz, Daniel Muthama, Rabea Abdelwahab, Alexander Aranda, Adrian Perdomo
  • See Presentation
  • See Github

Click here to view ALL TEAM PROJECTS and here for PHOTOS FROM EVENT. 📸

 

Stay tuned for updates on project implementations. . .

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16
Oct, 2023

By Nikki Cabus

Endeavor celebrates a decade of impact across Miami’s entrepreneurial ecosystem

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On October 11th, Endeavor Miami rang in their 10th anniversary with sunset celebration at Joia Beach in Parrot Jungle Miami.

The event was a celebration of impact, “empowering entrepreneurs to dream bigger, scale faster, and pay it forward,” as the Endeavor team would say.

Endeavor, a global organization that supports high-impact entrepreneurs in 40+ countries.

In 2013, Endeavor expanded from Latin America into the United States with their first office in the country based in Miami. The expansion was funded by John S. and James L. Knight Foundation who approved a $2M grant in 2012. South Florida has always been a hotbed of entrepreneurial activity and boasted a great work-life balance, yet struggled to support scaling startups. Endeavor Miami was on a mission to change that.

The event drew an impressive crowd of local leaders including two distinguished guests, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniela Levine Cava and City of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, who both addressed the crowd and congratulated Endeavor Miami and the team for their accomplishments over the past decade. Other attendees in attendance included Ernest Bachrach, Chairman of the Board, Lucas Chaya del Pino, Head of Dell for Startups, Matt Haggman, Founding Board Member and other leaders such as Melissa Medina, Johnna Mikkola, Erick Gavin, and our very own Tech Hub CEO Nikki Cabus. It was a great night for all!

“Endeavor Entrepreneurs generated $800 million in revenue and created nearly 5,000 jobs in 2022! That, my friends, IS IMPACT!” exclaimed Duran.

“Our journey has been nothing short of extraordinary. It’s about people coming together, like our Board Members, mentors, partners, and team members, who understand the potential of entrepreneurs to change the world. All of them make our work possible. And, of course, the show’s true stars, our incredible entrepreneurs, ” shared Claudia Duran, Endeavor Miami’s Managing Director.

Since launching in Miami in 2013, Endeavor has built and supported a portfolio of more than 25 companies led by over 40 entrepreneurs who have created over 5,000 employment positions throughout Florida as they scaled and hired talent. This momentum has brought in more than $800M in annual revenues in 2022. That’s huge!

According to a January 2022 Endeavor article, “As of 2022, 123 companies have completed our cohort initiatives and have gone on to employ over 1,500 individuals and generated $131M in annual revenues.” We can’t wait to see what those stats look like as we close out 2023.

Duran joined Endeavor Miami in 2019, where her determination, leadership experience, and thorough understanding of the entrepreneurial mindset have led the office to new heights of success. Endeavor Miami has recently launched Endeavor ScaleUp and EndeavorLAB. Both programs are exclusively for companies based in Florida, as we believe in the power of economic transformation by our local companies and we want to help write their stories.

Endeavor ScaleUp is a cohort-based initiative that equips high-growth founders in Florida with the network and resources to gain clarity on their path to scale. Endeavor selects up to 10 companies following its global selection criteria for high-impact entrepreneurs. They become your support system and community during and long after Endeavor ScaleUp is over.

EndeavorLAB is a cohort-based initiative to support underrepresented founders in Florida in building a foundation for scale. Current and past cohorts include a Latinx Founders, Women Funders and Black Founders cohorts sponsored and supported by VensureHR, Venture Miami, Dell for Startups and FPL Be PowerFL.

This year was the first time Endeavor Miami partnered with a city outside of Miami-Dade county in an effort to regionalize their efforts. The pilot program  was conducted with The City of Boca Raton through a two-month accelerated growth program where Boca-based founders took advantage of Endeavor Miami’s community of founders and experts, while gaining insights on how they can scale their business.

Congratulations to Endeavor Miami – we’re looking forward to the next 10 years!

To learn more about Endeavor Miami, visit https://endeavormiami.org/

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07
Mar, 2023

By Nikki Cabus

$1 million dollar gift from FPL establishes new Center for Intelligent Energy Tech at FAU

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A $1 million dollar gift from Florida Power & Light Company will help establish the FPL Center for Intelligent Energy Technologies (InETech) at Florida Atlantic University  

The considerable donation will be made through FPL’s charitable arm the NextEra Energy Foundation. The foundation supports organizations involved with arts and culture, education, the environment, health, animals and wildlife, affordable housing, human services, neighborhood development, economic development, government administration, and economically disadvantaged people. NextEra Energy provides a dollar-for-dollar match of employee gifts to eligible high schools, colleges and universities. Since 2003, the NextEra Energy Foundation has provided millions of dollars in support to the communities across Florida.

FAU and FPL have agreed to a four-year collaboration to establish the FPL Center InETech which will be housed in the FAU College of Engineering and Computer Science which is internationally recognized for cutting edge research and education in the areas of Computer Science and Artificial intelligence (AI), Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Bioengineering, Civil, Environmental and Geomatics Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Ocean Engineering.

Research conducted by the faculty and their teams expose our students to technology innovations that push the current state of the art of the disciplines. The College research efforts are supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Department of Defense (DOD), the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Department of Education (DOEd), the State of Florida, and Industry.

“Florida Atlantic takes great pride in its partnerships with community and industry leaders,” said FAU President Stacy Volnick, Ph.D

“We truly appreciate this gift from our partners at FPL and NextEra Energy, which will support our bold vision to solve tomorrow’s challenges today and create impactful opportunities for our students and faculty.”

Dr. Volnick collaborates with the Board of Trustees and other stakeholders to determine priorities and accomplish the many objectives of the University. The decision to approve the $1 million dollar gift was officially approved by the Board of Trustees on February 14th, 2023.

The primary focus of InETech will be research relating to smart technologies and products relevant to the energy sector, along with workforce development. This exciting partnership will enhance student recruitment for the College of Engineering and Computer Science and enable the brightest minds at the undergraduate, graduate and post-doctoral levels to participate in state-of-the-art projects that are directly related to the current and future needs of the energy industry.

“We have a long-standing partnership with FAU, and we are honored to work together to bring this state-of-the-art facility to life to inspire and motivate the energy leaders of tomorrow.”“

FPL, one of the state’s largest employers, has some of the best technology internship opportunities across the state. FPL’s approach to hiring reflects a belief in bringing in diverse backgrounds and experiences to their technical teams. Entry-level interns are often very eager to put their new skills to work and learn from the seasoned professionals and FPL hopes to attract an retain this innovative generation of technical talent.

At FPL, we hope that many of these students will become our future employees that can help drive innovation and creative solutions to meet the evolving needs of our customers and our communities,” said Pam Rauch, FPL vice president of external affairs and economic development.

Yufei Tang, Ph.D., associate professor and I-SENSE fellow in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, will serve as the director of the FPL Center for Intelligent Energy Technologies, and James VanZwieten, Jr., Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Ocean and Mechanical Engineering, will serve as the center’s associate director.

FAU Professor, Nancy Romance told South Florida Tech Hub that “the award was a major effort on the part of the Dean [Stella Batalama] and Michael Miller, Director of Development for the College of Engineering.” Miller said that the FAU team has been “collaborating with various entities within FPL” to make this happen. He mentioned working closely with the Power & Delivery team at Florida City Gas, Manny Miranda, Executive VP President Florida City Gas and Mike Putt, Senior Director of Real Zero Design and Application. NextEra Energy, Inc

“We are delighted to deepen our relationship with FPL/NextEra,” said Stella Batalama, Ph.D., dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science.

“This generous gift will have a multiplier effect on FAU’s successes in cutting-edge research and development, and endorses FAU’s capabilities to produce technologies and a skilled workforce for the energy industry.”

In addition to funding research for the benefit of the energy sector, the gift from the NextEra Energy Foundation also allows for the creation of the FPL InETech Center Scholarship for undergraduate and graduate students, which will assist in the College of Engineering and Computer Science’s ability to attract highly qualified students. The gift also makes available community outreach and K-12 activities that educate and engage younger students about the energy industry.

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Gary Vaynerchuk is coming to West Palm Beach as keynote for PBSC Foundation STEAM luncheon
Team Llamaa wins Tech Hub’s “Hack for Humanity” community hackathon 2023
Endeavor celebrates a decade of impact across Miami’s entrepreneurial ecosystem
$1 million dollar gift from FPL establishes new Center for Intelligent Energy Tech at FAU