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MIAMI, Sept. 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- eMerge Americas, a venture-backed platform focused on transforming Miami into a global tech hub, has announced the kick-off of the annual 2023 Global Startup Showcase. For the second year in a row, the Global Startup Showcase will merge with Panoramic Ventures' Startup Showdown and partner with the most active venture capital firm in Florida - Florida Funders - for a mega-pitch competition.

"Each year, the Startup Showcase cohort inspires us with revolutionary ideas. As the Miami movement grows, we're excited to provide a platform through eMerge Americas to celebrate the stories of innovative startups from around the globe," Melissa Medina, President of eMerge Americas said. "We're thrilled to strengthen our 2023 showcase by once again partnering with Panoramic Ventures and Florida Funders."

Participants will have a chance to win over $400,000 in investments: $250,000 investment by Florida Funders, $120,000 investment by Panoramic Ventures, and $50,000 investment by eMerge Americas. In addition, startups will be eligible to win more in-kind prizes that will be announced soon.

"We're excited to bring Startup Showdown back to Miami for the third year as we partner with eMerge Americas," said Paul Judge, Managing Partner of Panoramic Ventures. "This partnership speaks to the ongoing collaboration across the ecosystem to support extraordinary founders building category-leading companies in Miami and across the Southeast."

eMerge Americas 2023 Global Startup Showcase selects 100 of the best startups globally through a competitive application process within three stages (University Stage, Early Stage and Later Stage) to participate in a robust multi-week, virtual program, which will culminate at an in-person, grand finale pitch competition. This competition will take place April 20-21, 2023 in Miami Beach at the eMerge Americas global tech conference in front of leading venture capitalists, corporate enterprises, government officials, global media outlets, and guest judges. All selected startups will be allocated prime exhibit space on the 2023 eMerge Expo Floor within "StartUp Alley" to showcase their company over the course of the two-day event.

"Florida Funders is excited to once again be a part of this important global tech conference and startup pitch competition," said its Chief Investment Officer, Ryan Whittemore. "If the quality of companies applying are anything like this past year, it will be difficult to select just one for the $250,000 check from Florida Funders. But, we're up for the challenge!"

eMerge Americas 2022 Startup Showcase winner, Togal.AI, received a $420,000 investment from Panoramic Ventures, Florida Funders and eMerge Americas. CEO & Founder Patrick Murphy pitched Togal's vision in front of celebrity judges, including Kevin O'Leary of Shark Tank. Togal.AI uses machine learning to automatically calculate the square footage of plans, labeling of rooms and walls, and track updates on construction blueprints. For larger projects, which can be hundreds of pages long, this compresses weeks of work into seconds.

"We are honored to have won the eMerge 2022 Startup Showcase; the opportunities and connections this provided us have been priceless," Patrick Murphy, Togal.AI Founder and CEO said. "At eMerge, we were able to share our story in front of thousands of people of how Togal.AI is revolutionizing the construction industry, as well as making a huge impact by speeding up the building process."

Applications are now open and the deadline for entry is December 20, 2022. Click here to apply.

To date, more than 900 startups have participated in the eMerge Americas Startup Showcase since the program's 2014 inception, of which 70 startups have raised an aggregate of more than $1 billion in venture capital funding.

To apply to eMerge Americas 2023 Global Startup Showcase, submit your application here. The deadline for applications is December 20, 2022.

eMerge Americas is a venture-backed platform focused on transforming Miami into the tech hub of the Americas. The eMerge signature event, launched in 2014, is a global tech conference held annually at the Miami Beach Convention Center, attracting more than 20,000 attendees from 50 countries and over 4,000 unique participating organizations. In addition to the annual conference, eMerge organizes and hosts year-round executive summits, innovation challenges, startup pitch competitions, masterclasses, webinars, as well as publishes venture activity and investment insights reports. For the last decade, eMerge has served as a catalyst for innovation and investment across the Americas, working at the forefront of building the South Florida entrepreneurial and tech ecosystem. Visit www.emergeamericas.com for more information.

Recognized as the top VC in the Southeast region by Pitchbook, Florida Funders is a venture capital firm and angel network that invests in early stage technology companies in Florida and beyond. The Florida Funders platform creates a unique experience that educates our community of investors, provides transparency during the funding process, fosters communication across the ecosystem, and empowers the strategic relationships that drive investments.  Our experienced team is composed of investors, entrepreneurs and advisors focused on being the most respected and impactful early stage tech investment firm in the U.S.  To learn more, visit floridafunders.com.

Panoramic Ventures is a venture capital firm based in Atlanta that partners with extraordinary founders to build category-leading companies. Panoramic invests in B2B software and tech-enabled service businesses at all stages of maturity, from pre-seed and seed to growth and scale, giving more entrepreneurs access to capital to build leading tech companies. For more information, visit www.panoramic.vc or follow Panoramic Ventures on LinkedIn, Instagram, or Twitter @panoramicvc.

SOURCE eMerge Americas