Last Tuesday morning, several UDT employees attended the grand opening of the first Microsoft Innovation Center in the United States right here at Venture Hive in Downtown Miami. This “MIC”, as it is called, is a resource to help entrepreneurs and students cultivate their technology ideas and skills in an environment that invites collaboration and innovation. Venture Hive, right across the street from the future site of Miami World Center, is located in a small building covered in vibrant street art—further showcasing the diminishing gap between the arts and technology worlds in Miami.

Also in attendance at the event were several Miami notables such as Commissioner Marc Sarnoff; “The Hive” founder, Susan Amat; representatives from Microsoft, Venture Hive, and the South Florida technology community; as well as a representative from the Miami-Dade County School system, which will greatly benefit from UDT’s unique tablet-centered solution for students. Microsoft Windows programing is part of the solution, which includes the roll-out of 50,000 tablets to students throughout the Miami-Dade County School system.

The prevailing theme at the opening event was that Miami needs to be an information technology city. Technology spans across all demographics in society—it is both culturally and color blind–making a diverse city like Miami, recognized as the gateway to the Americas, the perfect location for a technology renaissance. We can no longer ignore the startup revolution happening in areas such as Silicon Valley. We need to create an environment where the brightest technology students can stay right here in South Florida to create the next successful business, or to further their career in the IT world. Technology is local, and organizations such as Venture Hive and Microsoft are creating environments that show that if students and entrepreneurs have technology ideas, they now have a place to go where they can receive help to develop, create, and market their plan.