Tech in South Florida update May 2012

I’ve been rather quiet lately on this blog, and there are several good reasons for it. One of the main reasons is that we at Refresh Miami have been working on some bigger projects to benefit the greater good of tech in South Florida.

Lately there has been a lot of talk and momentum about fostering tech and startups in Miami, from the government, to the various foundations, to the entrepreneurs and angels. This is a welcome change from 2 years ago where you were basically on your own as far as entrepreneurship in Miami. Now it’s easy to see why everyone is coming out of the woodworks to support startups in Miami, they are a cheap political asset. Fostering startups is fostering job creation, and at a much lower cost than it would take to bring a Cisco or Boeing to Miami.

One of the most frequent topics that has come up in the discussion of tech in miami though has been the lack of accessibility to experienced entrepreneurs and to financing. These are topics we are touching upon, but it is my understanding several groups are working on each of these issues at the moment.

A key factor in Miami’s growth as a tech center is going to be based on the formation of clusters of innovation throughout our area. Someone told me the other day, Miami doesn’t have a talent problem, Miami has a geography problem. Due to the extensively dispersed nature of South Florida, it is hard to focus the growth of the community on any one neighborhood.

I can’t publicly share what we’re doing yet with Refresh, as I don’t want to jinx it, and we still have a number of I’s to dot and T’s to cross. However we are looking for corporate sponsors to get involved, so if you are in a position to help, please reach out to us.