Friday afternoon, Diane Sánchez moderated a local panel discussion about building a successful technology hub, but other leaders participated through video conferencing, discussing their experiences and lessons learned in the United Kingdom, France and Mexico. The BritWeek Miami eMerge Americas Transatlantic Tech Bash capped off a busy week of speaking engagements and planning meetings for Sánchez, who has for the past year been traveling throughout South Florida, around the Americas and beyond, meeting with corporate executives, government leaders and leading entrepreneurs in the technology industry.
It’s all part of building partnerships in a giant initiative called eMerge Americas. Sánchez is CEO of the Technology Foundation of the Americas, the organization founded by tech entrepreneur and visionary Manny Medina to produce the eMerge Americas Techweek conference and spark a movement to establish a technology hub of the Americas in South Florida.
“eMerge Americas is not just an event. It’s a movement that will transform Miami,” said Sánchez, whose career as a technology executive spans 30 years. “I can honestly say that we are transforming thinking, in the way we see ourselves and the way the world sees Miami... I think people are starting to realize how much opportunity there is for our community and the Americas region if we work together.”
The team has been working nonstop to produce and promote eMerge Americas Techweek, coming May 2-6. The conference and anciliary events will bring together industry experts, entrepreneurs and policy makers from around the Americas and world as well as movers and shakers from within South Florida’s technology, government and business communities. Nearly 100 speakers have already been confirmed. A mayoral summit, hackathon, Americas-wide entrepreneur pitch contest, a Smart City Expo, mobile summit, student robotics competition and plenty of parties are also planned. “We have been overwhelmed by the amount of interest from around the world,” Medina told the Tech Bash crowd on Friday.
Most of the events will take place at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Tickets, which begin at $55 for the Expo and $195 for the Summit package with significant early-bird discounts, are selling on emergeamericas.org.
We talked to Sánchez about plans for eMerge, the mission, and her views on how the movement to build a tech hub is progressing.