Tampa Bay Wave

As our 2024 Hall of Fame Fundraiser and Celebration approaches, we want to begin thanking the people and organizations that have made this event possible. Kicking it off, we would like to extend our gratitude to Celestar Holdings Corporation and Wave valued board member Gregory Celestan. Their contribution to Hall of Fame is just one example of their unwavering support of Tampa Bay Wave, and we are so grateful. Thank you Celestar Holdings Corporation and Gregory Celestan!

This GivingTuesday, consider sponsoring a local entrepreneur's seat at Tampa Bay Wave's Hall of Fame Fundraiser and Celebration on December 11th. Your tax-deductible donation will connect emerging founders with established business leaders and deepen their involvement in the Tampa Bay Wave community. Support the next generation of local entrepreneurs by sponsoring a founder's seat today! https://lnkd.in/eRBR8ZVf

Today is GivingTuesday 2024! GivingTuesday is a global generosity movement unleashing the power of radical generosity. GivingTuesday was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Since then, it has grown into a year-round global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity. Today, Wave is asking you to consider including us in your GivingTuesday generosity. Tampa Bay Wave’s mission delivery relies on the generous financial support of our community through individual giving, grants and corporate sponsorships. Your contributions will empower tech startups and enrich the growth of our economy. To learn more about options for giving to Tampa Bay Wave, please visit our website, or reach out to our Director of Development & Strategic Partnerships, Dolores (Dee) Garcia. To give quickly, text WAVE to #26989!

Way to go Pulse Charter Connect!!

🚀 Exciting news! Tampa Bay Wave's 2025 CyberTech|X Accelerator is now accepting applications from cybersecurity startups worldwide! The CyberTech|X Accelerator provides innovative cybersecurity startups with access to strategic support, global networking, and mentorship from industry leaders like our sponsors and partners at A-LIGN, Bank of America, Cyber Florida at USF: The Florida Center for Cybersecurity, The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), U.S. Economic Development Administration, EY, and KnowBe4. If you're building innovative cybersecurity solutions, don't miss the opportunity to apply to this zero-equity accelerator. Application deadline: December 13th. Learn more and apply: https://lnkd.in/eRzZ8hu

Gotta love it when all I have to do is wear my Forecastr t-shirt and I'm an instant celebrity wherever I go! Last night I was at the Founders N' Funders VC Reverse Pitch Event in Tampa Bay, FL. Several founders were there specifically to meet someone from Forecastr in person. Robert Bremer, Founder of Packfiles, came to the event bearing gifts for his Forecastr analysts, Faisal Ahmed Mashrur and Joseph Mensah, who helped him build his financial model and now serve as go-to finance experts for him as part of his team. 🙌 Andrea & Jeff Esposito are the Founders of iDeare Inc., based in St Petersburg, FL. They were raving about their Forecastr analyst, Liam White, who has helped them know and understand their numbers as business owners so they are able to make better strategic decisions for the company and know how to talk to investors about why it makes sense to invest in their company! Our Forecastr analyst team was certainly one of the stars of the show last night! ⭐️ I met so many amazing founders here in the Tampa Bay area! And the presenting VCs were awesome! Scott Hoffman, Managing Partner at the Burgeon Fund was introduced to me by Forrest Hayes at Fund Launch. He is a prolific investor and an awesome human being. Rob Kamentsev, CPA represented ARK Investment Management LLC - Catherine Wood's VC Fund that has become a huge part of the St Petersburg / Tampa Bay startup ecosystem! Justis Mendez and Pablo Casilimas founded OneSixOne Ventures and have become some of the most active early-stage investors in Florida. They are doing events throughout the US. Can't wait to do more with these guys! Beau Bennett MBA, our friend from SLC who now lives in Orlando drove across the state to Tampa Bay to represent Future Funders VC, an early-stage fund that invests specifically in Florida startups. Matthew Ymiolek represented Tampa Bay Wave in place of Amit Agrawal who was not able to make it --- and he absolutely crushed it!!! CONGRATS to Tampa Bay Wave for being featured in USA TODAY in celebration of surpassing $1B of capital raised for companies that have gone through their amazing program! Way too many others to mention everyone here, but it was great meeting Ben Cady, CBPA at Insperity in person. Insperity made this event possible along with St. Petersburg College! It was so fun to experience the emerging startup ecosystem here in Tampa Bay! ------ 📸 For those at the event last night, please share any photos and tag those you met in the comments below.

Monday night was an incredible evening! Wave is proud to contribute to and facilitate critical discussions on strengthening Florida's blue economy and resilience at Monday's Accenture-hosted workshop. The session encouraged conversations on opportunities, groundbreaking technologies, and strategies to protect our coasts and promote economic resilience in the state of Florida. The collaborative spirit among stakeholders demonstrated how cross-sector partnerships can drive meaningful solutions for Florida's future. We are energized to see the long-term impact of these strategic conversations on our state's growth as a hub for innovation. • St. Pete Innovation District • U.S. Economic Development Administration •  • NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration • U.S. Department of Commerce • University of South Florida • Ocean Exchange • Braid Theory •Seaworthy Collective • World Ocean Council •

Tampa Bay Wave was honored to "pin" its newest Friend of Wave, Ben Hennelly. Welcome to the Wave network and ecosystem, Ben, and welcome to Tampa! We look forward to seeing you at Wave events. #startstaygrow

The Tampa Bay Wave 2024 FinTech|X Accelerator culminated on Thursday with an electrifying Pitch Night at the Palladium! In partnership with University of South Florida Muma College of Business, ten innovative founders showcased solutions to critical challenges in financial technology. The energy was palpable as each entrepreneur demonstrated how they're reshaping the future of FinTech through practical, industry-changing solutions. Additionally, we were lucky to hear from four insightful key speakers: The University of South Florida Provost and Executive Vice President Dr. Prasant Mohapatra, Derrick Cox of Encore Bank, Michael Wiemer, MBA of The University of South Florida Muma College of Business, and Lance Raab, a valued Wave board member. We're grateful to everyone who joined us in St. Petersburg for this milestone evening that highlighted both the program's success and the bright future ahead for financial innovation. The 2024 FinTech|X Accelerator was fueled by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), Encore Bank, Smiley Technologies, Inc., Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP, and TLC Embellished Catering. Thank you to these companies for their commitment to supporting and propelling groundbreaking FinTech startups. Incase you missed Pitch Night, check out these incredible companies! Finotta • finvix • Identifee • IM Financial • Kulipay • Muse Tax (Techstars '22) • NOTICENINJA • Revio Insight • Stello Technologies • Viva Benefits The Wave Community will be cheering them on in all of their continued success! Linda Olson • Santo Cannone • Demelza DePalma Genest • Richard Munassi MD MBA • Jennifer Ptack • Dolores (Dee) Garcia • Amit Agrawal • Jonathan Truong • Mariah R. • Mike Lynn • Prathyusha Pappi Reddy • Matthew Ymiolek • Gregory Pierce • Laura Davenport Photos by Tacy Briggs-Troncoso

Took away some solid insights from last Thursday's Tampa Bay Wave 2024 FinTech Accelerator launch. The program's format was notably impactful and efficient: 30 minutes of ecosystem updates paired with 30 minutes of startup pitches, creating a focused session that respected everyone's time while maximizing value. Interestingly, the USF-Wave partnership has evolved into a practical example of academic-startup collaboration. The $1B+ in program impact and USF's new cybersecurity college plans show how universities can actively participate in the startup ecosystem while giving students real exposure to entrepreneurship. It is clear Linda Olson, Richard Munassi MD MBA, and the USF team have found a rhythm that works for both the academic and startup communities.