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Lime launches Gen4 e-scooters in Miami-Dade
Lime launched scooters in Miami-Dade County, bringing its new Gen4 e-scooters to residents and visitors. Lime, which claims to be the world’s leading provider of shared electric vehicles, said it plans to be a long-term transportation partner to the area.
Lime says the Gen4 e-scooter will provide riders with the smoothest and most environmentally friendly shared scooter ride available. The new Gen4 also improves rider and pedestrian safety and has a new two-sided kickstand to prevent tipping over and thus preventing clutter. Other features include swept back handlebars; dual hand brake system to make slowing and stopping easier and more immediate when needed; a lowered baseboard to optimize the center of gravity on the scooter and make getting on and off easier; and enhanced suspension and larger wheels. The scooters also include a swappable battery, which Lime says will further reduce the carbon emissions of scooter riding.
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EndeavorLAB opens cohort for Black Founders
Endeavor Miami office has opened applications for the next EndeavorLAB Cohort for Black Founders in partnership with Dell for Startups. The deadline to apply is July 3.
“Minority founders tend to receive less support when building their companies, but we believe that taking active steps in assisting them is essential to creating a diverse and inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Claudia Duran, Managing Director of Endeavor Miami. “Therefore, we are proud to partner with Dell for Startups to aid Black founders in receiving the necessary resources to scale their businesses.”
EndeavorLAB is a two-month, audience-specific, accelerated growth program designed to support local early-stage, tech-enabled companies in establishing their business foundations post-revenue generation. Startups must be based in Florida, have achievedproduct-market-fit and be generating between $50K and $500K in annual revenues.
Selected entrepreneurs will receive a scholarship provided by Dell for Startups to participate in the EndeavorLAB program. “I look forward to engaging with this high-impact cohort of founders and supporting them with Dell for Startups’ resources for entrepreneurs,” said Lucas Chaya del Pino, Dell Expert Network Lead at Dell Technologies
Find out more and apply on the Endeavor Programs landing page.
This is the second EndeavorLAB cohort for Black founders. Last year, Endeavor’s Miami office launched an EndeavorLAB Cohort for Black founders, in partnership with the Simkins Family Foundation, to promote Black-led entrepreneurship as a catalyst for economic growth in Miami. Since completing the program, cohort participants that included Kiddie Kredit, GovLia and Beloved Box have doubled their revenue, with one founder 10xing their company, Endeavor Miami said. The cohort also created 22 new jobs in the Miami ecosystem and raised over $1.5M in external capital to fuel their next chapter of growth.
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Apply now for Social Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
Radical Partners is calling for applications for its signature acceleration program Social Entrepreneurship Bootcamp.
For its cohort 7, Radical Partners is looking for 10 to 15 change-makers leading for-profit social ventures or non-profits with sustainable revenue models, says Executive Director Joan Godoy. The selected change makers will be invited to attend a free 4-month leadership development journey that includes six skills-development workshops, access to 1:1 coaching sessions, wellness and mindfulness sessions, and access to a powerful community of mentors and 140+ changemakers as part of its alumni network. The Social Entrepreneurship Bootcamp alumni list is a who’s who of impactful Miami leaders and founders.
Apply to join the 7th cohort of Social Entrepreneurship Bootcamp by June 28th.
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Fort Lauderdale’s Tunnel Vision moving to next step with Boring Co.
Fort Lauderdale is making the next move to bring a Boring Co. tunnel to Las Olas.
City commissioners agreed to paying Elon Musk’s Boring Company $375,000 to study the cost and feasibility of an underground loop for vehicles shuttling passengers between downtown Fort Lauderdale and the city’s beach. After getting that study and cost estimate, the commission will be able to decide whether to go forward with the projects, commissioners said.
The Boring Company’s initial estimates of the cost of a two-tunnel loop linking downtown and the beach ranged from $60 million to $90 million. Read more in The Real Deal Miami.
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FundKite moving headquarters to downtown Miami
FundKite, a fintech company, will create up to 50 jobs once it moves its headquarters to downtown Miami from New York, the South Florida Business Journal reported.
FundKite will relocate to a 5,302-square-foot office at 100 N. Biscayne Blvd. and scale back its presence in New York. Five FundKite employees are heading to Miami and the rest will be hired locally. It is hiring for engineers, underwriters, collections agents, customer support and marketing.
Founded in 2015, FundKite provides an online funding platform for small businesses. FundKite has worked with more than 90,000 businesses across the U.S. and doled out more than $900 million in financing. Read more in the South Florida Business Journal.
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More local news to note
- Miami-based financial-technology companies Pipe, a trading platform for recurring revenue streams, and Novo, a digital bank for small businesses, are among the startups that made Forbes‘ 2022 Fintech 50 list, which includes banking, money transfer, crypto and blockchain ventures. Pipe is already a unicorn and Novo is on Crunchbase’s list of emerging unicorns, valued at about $700 million.
- Boatsetter has launched Boatsetter Academy, a first-of-its kind, free beginner’s boating course, dedicated to teaching new boaters about the fundamentals of operating a boat. This free two-hour, hands-on experience is designed for first time boaters to build confidence and gain familiarity with the basics of boating. It is currently offered in San Diego, Manhattan and Miami. Future academies will take place in Seattle, Chicago, Washington D.C., Austin, Tampa, Dallas and Los Angeles.
- TradeStation Crypto, an online brokerage for trading cryptocurrencies and part of TradeStation, donated $50,000 to the Miami Dade College Foundation of Miami Dade College’s Student Managed Investment Fund. MDC students will manage the SMIF’s crypto assets through TradeStation Crypto’s platform and gain access to TradeStation Crypto’s educational and investing resources to help deepen their knowledge of crypto and deploy investment strategies. “Our goal is to help prepare these students to develop modern investment strategies that include hedging and risk management,” said James Putra, VP of product strategy at TradeStation Crypto. [READ MORE: 5 Qs with TradeStation]
- CinderFit, a Miami-based performance fitness brand, will host a community workout, debuting its range of weighted exercise blocks, with Mayor Francis Suarez and fitness influencers on Saturday, June 18, at The Underline’s Urban Gym sponsored by Baptist Health. The workout will celebrate the intersection between South Florida entrepreneurship, the community’s flourishing parks and open spaces, and Mayor Suarez’s focus on making Miami one of the happiest and healthiest cities in America. Homegrown in a Miami backyard, CinderFit offers a wide range of fitness gear and a gym location in Little River. They offer free community workouts every Saturday at 9:30 a.m. at the CinderFit 305 gym in Little River, said Felipe Azenha, Co-Founder of CinderFit.
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Opportunity Knocks
- ‘Miami for everyone’, June 17-19: Venture Miami will kick off a three-day series of events and programs designed to educate locals on opportunities in the local tech sector. Called ‘Miami For Everyone,’ the event includes a hackathon and a full day of workshops catering to people of all ages and skillsets. Find out more and sign up here.
- Black Founder’s Demo Day, Aug. 20: Pitch for up to $1M. Each of the 16 selected companies will receive $3,000 for travel, planning, and accommodations. All startups will be provided a demo booth to display their products or services, as well as a stage to pitch to nationally recognized brands and a panel of active venture capital investors. Learn more here.
Follow Nancy Dahlberg on Twitter @ndahlberg and email her at [email protected]
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