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Miami Tech Week 2022 Recap

Miami Tech Week 2022 Recap

by Joe · 93 things on NewTwos

Miami Florida, home of the greatest artist of our generation (Pitbull), cafe con leche, and the best tech conference i've ever been to
It was the Thursday before the event and we received a message from the organizers of an accelerator we are part of...
"We need a final head count for Miami next week so we can book an AirBnB" - Pablo Casilamas of OneSixOne ventures said
It was at that moment that my interest started to reach critical mass. Meeting our friends, in Miami, for a tech conference? Count Twos Guys in...
✓ Tell Pablo we’re in on Miami
We hit the road from Jacksonville, where we had Easter with my mom, and next stop was South Beach.
Parker has an affinity for listening to albums all the way through so I did what any front seat DJ would do and cranked up a Young Thug album...
Listened to Punk for the first time driving down to Miami with Parker. 8.9/10.
It may not have been the best rapping of all time but as a musical experience it was very enjoyable.
When we arrived in South Beach it was clear that the patrons were partying regardless of it being Easter Sunday.
We made it to the AirBnB, unpacked our bags, looked up at the clock, and realized it was 8:35pm and we had not had dinner.
Since I lived in Miami for a portion of my life I knew one place that would be enjoyed by all...
Went to chicken kitchen with Parker. Got a large chop chop with extra mustard curry sauce. Very tasty 8.8/10
Also we were the last customers they had. Woman was literally waiting at the door to lock it
If you haven't been to Chicken Kitchen in Miami, do yourself a favor and make it part of the itinerary next time you go. And don't forget the extra mustard curry sauce.
After we were fed and a couple hours passed, the organizers of our accelerator arrived. They told us they were able to get VIP passes for the rest of the week and that was the beginning of the best week ever.
The morning after, we loaded up into an Uber and headed to the conference.
When we arrived, the first order of business was to check out the VIP area. One of the best parts? Free canned water.
I wish I could say I was kidding, but canned water is so superior to bottles of water and there was an unlimited supply of it.
Once we had a couple canned waters and a bagel, we hit the main stage kick of the festivities. One of the first speakers really set the tone for the next two days...
Mayor Francis Suarez, City of Miami
Mayor Suarez is the definition of swag. He has the tan of David Hasselhoff, the hair of Zac Efron, and the energy of Ryan Seacrest.
Mayor Suarez was joined by the presenting sponsor of the event who had a special gift for those in attendance.
Peter Smith, CEO of Blockchain.com
Peter put a QR code up on the projector screens and told everyone they would receive a free $50 in bitcoin with their first trade on Blockchain.com
As someone who loves deals (and free $$) I did what any normal person would do...
✓ Make a Blockchain.com account
The sponsored speakers has ended, Parker and I were eager for another canned water, so we made our way back to the VIP area.
After a couple hours of handshaking and baby kissing (aka networking) we were introduced our first "VIP Unplugged" speaker, Steve Case.
Steve Founded AOL back in 1985 and has been on the entrepreneur/tech scene ever since. Steve had a lot of amazing things to share which I will list below with some added commentary.
As it relates to his reason for starting AOL...
3% of people were online and they averaged an hour a week
We thought the world would be better if it was connected
How cool is this? At the time when he was developing his plan for AOL, 3% of people were online for an average of an hour a week!
I know I am not the only one who gets painfully upset by the weekly screen time notification I get from Apple every Sunday. Let's just say, i'm averaging 70000% more screen time then the average guy in 1985.
Was the director of new pizza development for Pizza Hut
How does one get this job? Sounds amazing.
Came to Emerge in 2017 and started to see what is happening in the startup ecosystem
Support small companies because they will be the future of the city
In entrepreneurship, it is easy to say and really hard to do. It all comes down to people and team.
This is how Steve ended the conversation and he could not have been more spot on. The startup ecosystem is one that needs to be protected, because the future depends on it. And the only way for startups to be successful is to do difficult things with great people.
The next speaker is someone who's achievements speak for themselves...
Hearing Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit, speak in VIP area.
The week before we decided to go to Miami, I was doing some research on how Reddit achieved their first 1000 users.
Drove from Virginia to Boston to have a book signed by Paul Graham, told them they drove all the way from Virginia, he valued their commitment, took the meeting, liked them, got them into YC with an idea that they didn't even come up with.
It was this commitment that I wanted to relate with Alexis on - so I devised a plan for how I could chat with the Reddit co-founder once he was through speaking.
As he stepped off the stage, a SWARM of people gathered around for selfies and handshakes. While it prevented me from becoming fast friends with the billionaire entrepreneur, it didn't prevent me from planting a seed about the best place to write things down...
Handed Alexis a $2 bill and a sticker
We were also given his email address, so the door is not closed on the Ohanian x Twos Guys rocket ship to the moon.
As the day winded down, the real tech week started. We were invited to a couple after parties, where we were told the "real" networking goes down.
After a few adult libations and business cards exchanged, we started to wind down. But not until I tried one of my favorite hors d'oeuvres I have ever had...
Deconstructed Caprese is DANK
A single sun-dried tomato, ball of mozzarella, and dollop of pesto made for a light yet refreshing appetizer I was not expecting to like as much as I did.
Safe to say I will be making deconstructed caprese for my guests in the near future.
That was how we wrapped our first day in Miami for Tech Week 2022. Onto day Twos.
For our second day we made a lot of the same moves. Canned water, speaker sessions, and networking.
The first speaker we saw was the surgeon general Vivek Murthy. Dr. Murthy had a lot to share about mental health post pandemic, how the United States is recovering, and one thing that I found very impactful...
If you don’t measure it, it doesn’t matter
Words that every entrepreneur needs to hear. Data is one of the most important elements to growing any business. The reason is because numbers don't lie and measuring your numbers are the only way to get a benchmark for whether your are improving, stagnant, or going down.
After Dr. Murthy's talk, I approached the side of the stage with the same intent. I wanted to strike up a conversation, tell him about Twos, and become fast friends.
But similar to the day before, I was out shined by the 30 or so other people that had the same idea.
When I tried to hand him a $2 bill and a Twos sticker, one of the people on his team swooped in, handed the $2 bill back to me, and mentioned that it would be considered a bribe (since he is a government official). I laughed, apologized, and waited for the next speaker.
What I wasn't expecting, was someone who I have been watching for over 10 years to take the stage...
Kevin O'Leary Unplugged
I have been a fan of Shark Tank for as long as I can remember and Mr. Wonderful was always the best part of the show.
His raw authenticity and unfiltered feedback was something I have learned a lot from and was excited to witness in person.
Here are some of the things that I took away from Kevin's talk...
"Waking up rich does not change anything, you can just start helping other entrepreneurs"
This quote was made in reference to one thing he remembered most from his first company. He referred to SoftKey Software as a "typical basement startup" where he and 10 of his partners found out that they were acquired in an all cash deal of $4.2B. According to Kevin, it did not change much for him as one week after the acquisition, he wanted to be back at work.
It’s not about the money, it’s about the pursuit of personal freedom
Both of these things felt very relatable to my journey with Twos thus far. Being an entrepreneur has given me the opportunity to do something I love doing every day, and it is a gift I wish everyone could experience.
You need to have a portfolio deals bc the crap is what makes you money
This was one of my favorite things Mr. Wonderful said because to me it means that some of the best ideas are the overlooked ones. Plenty of people have doubted the utility and reach that Twos can have, yet we love doing it and know the impact it will make on the world.
It was now time for Kevin to leave the stage and I had learned from my two failed experiences how to become fast friends with Mr. Wonderful.
Instead of waiting for Kevin to come down and eventually be swarmed by the herd, I approached the stage and started the conversation I wanted to have.
I said, "Kevin, I am a huge fan and know two things about you - that you are extremely busy and that you love money" as I handed him a sticker and $2 bill.
We spoke about what we are building with Twos and the rarity of $2 bills which is when one of my favorite life moments came to fruition.
Made Kevin O’Leary laugh with my “the best part of marketing with $2 bills is you can call up chase bank and they only charge you $2 for them”
This was no pity laugh, this was a full on laugh. It made me feel like Kevin would remember this moment, even though he doesn't have Twos to write it down (that we know of).
Kevin then hit the main stage and his audience was bigger than any speaker I had seen thus far. One thing that he said that I knew I wanted to write down...
When the US government regulate Bitcoin it will go to $100,000
And guess who is the newest Bitcoin investor thanks to the free $50 Blockchain.com ✌️😎
After Mr. Wonderful spoke, we started to make our way towards the exit to the best event of the week, 305.Ventures + Anti-Fund pitch competition.
When we arrived to the secret location, we were met by security that found our names on the RSVP list, and welcomed in.
The best part of this event was not the free food, drinks, or networking opportunities. Anti-Fund is Jake Paul's newest venture and we were foaming at the mouth to tell him about Twos.
After the pitch competition has ended, we saw Jake from across the party, approached him with a $2 bill and a sticker, and had a great 2 minute pitch about Twos.
“My Apple Notes are a mess” - Jake Paul
It was this comment that made the week for us. A lot of people can relate with this sentiment and Jake actively took his Apple Notes out of his pocket to show us the mess he was referring to.
He really liked the move feature, the clean UI, and seemed like someone who can really benefit from an app like Twos.
We were given his email to follow up and look forward to a potential partnership.
That was the last event we went to before making our way back to Tampa the following morning.
Overall, we had an amazing time in Miami for Tech Week 2022. We met some amazing people, had some wonderful conversations, and look forward to fostering the relationships we made.
eMerge Americas put on a wonderful event and we look forward to returning next year.