The Tampa Bay Innovation Center is launching a new cohort aimed at startups in the machine learning, artificial intelligence and data science spaces.
The program will focus on startups simplifying the collection of data. It will be for a range of company sizes, connecting founders with advisers and investors.
“There have been many exciting announcements recently in the world of data science and AI, but the industry has barely dipped its toe into the next wave of innovation,” said Ken Evans, accelerator managing director, in a statement.
The program starts in mid-August and is supported by Ark Invest, Morrow Consultants and PODS Moving and Storage. It is also supported by TampaBay.Ventures, Pinellas County Economic Development and the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership.
Ark Invest, led by Cathie Wood, has a particular interest in innovative technology such as AI. Ark and the Tampa Bay Innovation Center have partnered on the upcoming ARK Innovation Center, slated to open on Oct. 1.
“We’re in a brave new exciting world, and we’re really happy to be here and to work ... on the Innovation Center,” Wood said at a previous TBIC event in April. “We have very high hopes it will deliver some of the most astonishing opportunities we’ll see in our lifetimes.”
This is the second new cohort for the innovation center this year, which kicked off a new cohort in January focused on climate change.
The latest cohort will meet weekly with one-on-one mentors and group workshops, helping with go-to-market strategies, customer discovery and product road mapping.
“We are excited to provide this new program which, given the interest in data analytics and artificial intelligence, we expect will be highly sought after by companies bringing new products to market,” said Chris Paradies, TBIC’s chair, in a statement.
