MELISSA MEDINA

PRESIDENT AND CEO, EMERGE AMERICAS, MIAMI

Medina founded eMerge with her father, Manny, to transform Miami into a global tech hub by connecting capital and talent. It draws more than 20,000 people from 5,000 companies in 45 countries. Beyond a single event, eMerge now is a year-round platform hosting investor summits, start-up pitch competitions, virtual education sessions and other events. A University of Florida grad with a bachelor’s and MBA, Medina has eMerge launching the Miami AI School program to fast-track founders, operators and creatives into AI-native leaders. It also acquired Miami AI Hub, the artificial intelligence initiative, and brought on its founder Burhan Sebin as eMerge’s first chief AI officer. Medina says it signals eMerge’s long-term commitment to AI innovation. “Burhan has played a key role in fostering a strong AI community here in South Florida of over 4,000 people,” Medina says. “His vision aligns perfectly with our mission to elevate Miami as a global destination for deep tech and emerging technologies.” Medina says eMerge’s flagship conference in April will have a significant expansion of AI programming. Also coming this year are strategic programming, investments and partnerships in national security, finance and health care.