Manny Medina: 4 things South Florida needs to be a tech hub
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- Celia Ampel
- Reporter- South Florida Business Journal
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South Florida is not quite a tech hub yet, Terremark founder Manny Medina told a crowd of entrepreneurs Tuesday at the LAB Miami.
"There's an incredible amount of talent being trained here, but we don't have the employment base," he said.
His remarks at the LAB's "Brain Food" lecture series follow a few months of media hype about Miami's tech scene, with national news outlets asking "Is Miami the next Silicon Valley?"
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Medina sold his Terremark data center to Verizon in 2011 for more than $1 billion. He's now focusing his efforts on expanding the local tech scene: He invests in startups through Medina Capital and started the eMerge Americas conference.
Here's what Medina said South Florida needs to improve its tech ecosystem:
- Education
Tech hubs develop around great technological training, Medina said: Think Silicon Valley's relationship with Stanford University or Boston vis-à-vis the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
South Florida universities from Miami to Palm Beach are training talented workers, Medina said. Nova Southeastern University and Florida Atlantic University will join the second eMerge Americas conference this May.
- Accelerators and incubators
South Florida needs to focus its efforts on accelerators and incubators to create local tech jobs, Medina said.
New accelerators and incubators have been popping up every few months in South Florida, including Fort Lauderdale's just-launched Thesis Ventures and Florida Atlantic University's Tech Runway, which announced its first class of startups Thursday.
- Funding mechanisms
Celia Ampel covers technology, startups, venture capital and angel investment. Stay on top of the latest venture news with our free daily newsletter. Click here to subscribe.
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