FAU Showcases Entrepreneurship, Innovation at eMerge Americas

Three colleges within Florida Atlantic University attended eMerge Americas in Miami Beach recently to showcase student innovation and commitment to entrepreneurship in the South Florida tech industry.

Founded by influential South Florida leader, innovator and College of Business alumnus Manuel Medina ‘74, this 10^th annual global tech conference and expo brought together business leaders, industry innovators and emerging entrepreneurs to engage in workshops, exhibits and speeches on the latest in trends and technologies.

FAU’s College of Business, College of Engineering & Computer Science, Schmidt College of Medicine and Research Park collaborated on a large booth that highlighted several aspects of their work. It included displays and information on robotics, prosthetics and innovation in health care, while the College of Business highlighted five alumni honored by Forbes’ “30 under 30” for innovation in entrepreneurship.The alumni honored were Kyle Lansing for StrawFish, Jan Bednar, Shipmonk; Alex Schulze and Andrew Cooper, 4Ocean; Hannah Herbst, Beacon; and Arielle Baril, Rielli Luxury. 

“We were thrilled to have a presence alongside College of Medicine and Engineering at eMerge Americas to honor a decade of the transformational work that Manny and Melissa Medina have done to launch and support South Florida as a tech hub,” said Daniel Gropper, Ph.D., dean of FAU’s College of Business. “We are proud to be partners and work together to further expand and strengthen the tech ecosystem across South Florida.”

Faculty and students also had a large presence at the event. Along with Gropper, Curtis Whitehair, Ph.D., interim dean of the Schmidt College of Medicine; and Stella Batalama, Ph.D., dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science; met with attendees to share more on FAU’s collaborative efforts.

College of Business management senior Joseph Watson was one of 14 students from a South Florida university to be awarded an eMerge Americas’ “2024 Rising Star Award for talent and achievements. He also presented on a panel focused on upcoming college graduate perspectives on the Miami business landscape.

-FAU-