Roberto Interiano is the executive director of the Miami-Dade Entrepreneurial Development Organization (MEDO). Through MEDO, Knight Foundation is providing $210,000 in support to expand the Venture Hive business accelerator program and to provide public programming on investing and entrepreneurship. Photos (cc) by Tech Cocktail Miami on Flickr.

Miami has experienced spectacular growth as a tech startup hub. I’ve witnessed its evolution over the past four years, as a mentor or adviser with a wide variety of tech startups, and more recently, as executive director and board member with the Miami-Dade Entrepreneurial Development Organization, a not-for-profit that promotes and manages programs that foster the growing Miami tech startup ecosystem. For example, MEDO administers funding from institutions such as Knight Foundation and the Miami Downtown Development Authority to help emerging companies thrive.

Knight Foundation and Venture Hive, an entrepreneurial hub in downtown Miami, are at the center of cultivating and promoting Miami as a tech center. Through a grant administered by MEDO, Knight Foundation will help expand programs and events at the Venture Hive, which is home to 31 companies from 18 different companies.

One of the Venture Hive flagship programs has been its accelerator in downtown Miami. This program is entering its fourth year, and offers selected participants a $25,000 non-equity grant, a 13-week intensive mentor-driven accelerator program, and six months of free office space at Venture Hive. In addition, participants receive access to a wide network of leading business professionals, as well as mentorship and funding opportunities. This program has had great impact in increasing Miami’s visibility and in attracting tech entrepreneurs to our region. This past year, over 400 applicants from around the world applied; the program admitted just 10 tech ventures.

Knight’s support will allow Venture Hive to expand its mentorship offerings for startups. Venture Hive will also host workshops and talks throughout the fall and spring as well as a two-day Angel Investor Summit in February 2016.

This programming capitalizes on the three main aspects that differentiate Miami from other tech hubs:

·      Talent: Miami’s talent is culturally rich. It is common to see Miami tech startups with diverse team members – people who bring cultural and global know-how as they test and internationalize their offerings. Miami’s talent is also well networked, and with ease, startups can find talent with access to top decision-makers in key markets. Miami is also an appealing pace to live, easing the job of attracting specialized talent.

·      Strategic gateway location: Miami is ideal as a point of entry or expansion to and from North America, Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America.  

·      Financial hub: This aspect is perhaps my favorite as most of my career has been in finance. Miami has an important concentration of private wealth – from family offices, private wealth management and real estate. This wealth is just beginning to explore investments in tech startups. As the people who control this capital become more familiar with the variety of tech startups in Miami and the potential for high returns, they are likely to allocate more resources.  

These traits give Miami a unique role in the international tech ecosystem, and we can look forward to more tech startups joining our community as the knowledge of this identity expands. Working with Knight Foundation, Venture Hive and other partners in the community, MEDO looks forward to helping our tech scene to grow and to ensuring that startups have access to the tools they need to become successful businesses.

Venture Hive’s next accelerator program begins in January. For more information, visit venturehive.com.