Unicorn companies, blockchain and AI have all been dominating the tech world recently and it did the same at Tampa Bay Inno's State of Innovation meetup Wednesday night, focused around next gen tech.
Rosa Shores co-founder from Blockspaces, John Wagner from CoLabs and Roger Grimes, representing unicorn company KnowBe4, took center stage to discuss the trends in their industries and just what Tampa Bay can do to harness some of the electricity within them.
"You can learn this," Wagner, the executive vice president at CoLabs, said. "It’s not a wall you can’t get over — don’t be intimated too much by this.”
Wagner and Shores dove into the admittedly broad topics of AI and blockchain, stating the potential for each industry is endless. However, Shores said the most obvious first industry for blockchain to innovate is the supply chain industry, and Wagner said it may take some time for AI to make major waves.
“With AI we are able to attach value to large data sets that we may not see the potential for immediately, but can help explain human behavior and in turn help us work towards solutions," he said.
As for what Florida can do to help foster these industries, Shores pointed to work already being done at the government level. Gov. Rick DeSantis recently passed the Florida Blockchain Bill, which creates a 13-person task force that will look into ways SOMETHING.
"One thing Florida can do to help prepare for crypto currency is make sure we don’t have restrictive legislation against the technology," she said. "By removing restrictions we allow companies to build the tech here.”
Another next gen tech the government — and society — needs to keep an eye on, according to experts, is quantum computers and its impact on crypto currency.
“No company I talk to is preparing for the quantum crypto break," Grimes, the data-driven defense evangelist from KnowBe4 and the event's keynote, said. "The NSA is...everyone should be preparing for this. There’s more proof behind quantum mechanics than gravity."
A quick thank you to our sponsors for the event Synapse, Florida Funders, Embarc Collective and the University of Tampa.
