8+ things to know in #MiamiTech: F1 & Globant team up; Miami DDA offers startup incentives; plus news by Endeavor Miami, Brightline, Research Park at FAU, CIC, Miami Fintech Club & more

May 3, 2024

24 6 minutes read

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1 Globant, F1 team up to improve fan experience

Going to the Miami Grand Prix this weekend? Globant and Formula 1 are collaborating to transform the racing experience for fans and racing teams, and their first two big projects will focus on improving F1’s mobile app and the current pit wall system.

The companies have announced a multi-year partnership to elevate the digital experiences for both F1 teams and fans. As an Official Partner, Globant will support Formula 1 in building best-in-class IT systems and products.

To start, Globant – with 29,000+ professionals a in 33 countries and a large presence in Miami – will transform and enhance the at event digital experiences for F1 fans and key stakeholders, including the content delivery system used on the pit wall, a real-time streaming solution that provides F1 and key stakeholders with unique multi-channel media.

Then throughout the partnership, F1 will use leading Globant technology to better connect fans digitally and help create once-in-a-lifetime moments for fans attending Grands Prix, both on and off track. Globant has worked with FIFA, Major League Rugby, and Los Angeles Clippers in the US, among other organizations.

“This exciting partnership with Globant will help F1 further elevate the at track digital experience for both fans and teams. F1 has always been at the forefront of innovation and this partnership will allow us to use the latest technology to give fans the once-in-a-life time experience they deserve,” said Jonny Haworth, Formula 1’s director of Commercial Partnerships.

2 Miami DDA expands incentives to startups

Miami has firmly established itself as a global business hub. To keep this momentum going, the Miami Downtown Development Authority is offering $1.1 million in incentives to attract businesses seeking to move to or expand their operations in the Central Business District (CBD), the Arts & Entertainment District (A&E), or Brickell. The updated incentive program expands previous programs and includes grant funding for ground floor retail and startups.

The agency is aiming to attract different types of businesses including ground floor retail, startups and mid-size businesses. Already, Floww, a UK-based Fintech company backed by the London Stock Exchange Group, will be awarded by the Miami DDA $150,000 over three years to help grow its business operations in Miami.

For startup companies, this program offers up to $25,000 per business for startups with incentives aimed at building innovation, economic growth and a vibrant entrepreneurial community. The program is flexible to allow startups to either operate out of a co-working space or lease their own dedicated office space. For mid-size businesses, this program offers up to $50,000 in funding to incentivize commercial office space leases in Downtown Miami and is an expansion of the current program. The grants have been increased to offer $500 per 500 sq. ft. of new space leased and $2,000 per new employee.

“We have seen massive growth since the pandemic and the Miami DDA is looking to the future to focus on the city’s trajectory as a global business epicenter,” said Christina Crespi, Miami DDA’s CEO and executive director. “We are seeing occupancy rates for downtown office space increasing even as developers continue to add new supply. These incentives will build on that success.”

Incentive grants are available to businesses expanding or relocating into space within the Miami DDA district boundaries. To learn more, visit www.MiamiDDA.com.

3 Research Park at FAU adds 89 jobs

The Research Park at Florida Atlantic University is in growth mode after a strong 2023. Startups based at the Research Park added 89 new jobs last year, according to its 2023 Annual Report. About half of the businesses at the park provide internships to FAU students and 65% hire university graduates.

Research Park companies now have 971 employees in total. Startups in the Global Ventures program have 58 employees. The facility houses everything from ocean technology to aerospace companies, but is dominated by health care.

Established in 1985, the Research Park is governed by the Florida Atlantic Research and Development Authority, an independent special district created by Palm Beach and Broward counties in partnership with FAU. It also hosts Global Ventures, an incubator program for second-stage tech firms, and FAU Tech Runway, a public-private startup accelerator. Read more in the South Florida Business Journal.

4 Endeavor Miami companies honored as Outliers

Five Endeavor Miami companies have made it to the Endeavor Outliers Class of 2024, recognizing them as the fastest-growing and most impactful companies within our global network.

The 2024 Endeavor Outliers class is composed of the Endeavor Entrepreneurs leading the fastest-growing scaleups in its global network, as well as those who have led their companies to meaningful exits and are now seeking to multiply their own impact as role models to the next generation of founders.

In Miami, the five companies are Blankfactor, Digibee, Momentis Surgical, Nearpod, and Wonder Brands. They are part of the 229 firms driving global economic growth by creating 1.3 million jobs and raising over $31 billion.

5 Brightline ending monthly commuter passes

Brightline will discontinue its monthly passes by the end of May. “In recent months, it has become increasingly difficult to accommodate all guests as peak trains are reaching capacity. We continue to evaluate the best approach to balance customer demand,” the Miami-based high-speed rail company said in a recent newsletter.

Brightline is ending its $399 SoFlo Solo Pass, $229 SoFlo Shared Pass and $1,199 All Station Shared Pass, and will replace its monthly pass system with a fixed rate 10-ride pack valid for up to 30 days. The fixed-rate packages range between $250 and $550 depending on whether its for smart or premium service and the commuter ’s departing station.

6 CIC and ProColombia partner to support 10 startups

CIC (Cambridge Innovation Center), a global leader in building and operating innovation ecosystems, in partnership with ProColombia, a government entity, announced the 10 Colombian startups selected to be part of an upcoming CIC International Soft Landing program to expand into the U.S. market.

The selected founders will participate in a 3-week online training program, which will culminate with a one week trip to the U.S. with time in South Florida and Massachusetts. Their in-person portion of the program will include meetings with prominent local economic leaders and potential partners, clients, tech entrepreneurs, investors and venture studio firms, accelerator programs, and government agency officials.

The selected startups are Avenfor, Balay, C4c7us,Certika, Datapeers, MagicLog, Netdata, Procorvus, TuCash, and Valopes.

7 Miami Fintech Club event featuring Fed leader

The Miami Fintech Club announced an exclusive breakfast panel featuring Sunayna Tuteja, the Chief Innovation Officer of the Federal Reserve System. The event takea place on Thursday, May 9, 2024, at 9:30 A.M. at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage with key decision-makers and gain insights into the Fed’s approach to innovation. Tuteja will discuss use cases of innovation at the Federal Reserve, projects or trends that should be discontinued and the reasons behind it, a project that could have significant impact if instantly implemented, and more. To RSVP, go here.

8+

Opportunity Knocks

DEADLINE TODAY: EndeavorLAB Black Founders Cohort: A cohort based program to support underrepresented founders in Florida in building a foundation for scale. Endeavor selects 10 companies following its global selection for high-impact entrepreneurs. Applicants submit an application online. Finalists are interviewed by Endeavor Staff. Apply here by May 3.
Don’t miss your chance to apply for the 2024 Black Ambition Prize competition; prize winners can receive up to $1 million in funding, along with valuable entrepreneurial training, mentorship and access to a global network. Apply here by May 6.
Apply to pitch at the Florida Venture Forum’s Early Stage Venture Conference June 4-5 in Orlando and compete for $300K in prize money and capital investment – as well as investors’ attention. Apply by May 10 here.
Applications are open for the”Prototype to Product” phase of the Built in Miami Program. You will learn how to move from user-validated prototypes to creating minimum viable products on your way to taking your idea to the next level. Apply here by May 15.

ICYMI

Have news to share? Email Nancy Dahlberg at [email protected]. Follow me on X @ndahlberg.

I am a writer and editor with extensive media experience and a passion for journalism and serving the community. Most of my career has been spent with the Miami Herald in business news, and my expertise is writing about tech and entrepreneurs. I love hosting this blog for Refresh Miami and we aim to be the go-to site for South Florida startup and tech news, features and views. Have news? Contact me at [email protected]. Thanks for reading!

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