The main summer event for the region's business and technology sector celebrated its tenth anniversary with a special edition in which innovation, technology and networking were the main themes of the meeting.
Once again, Punta Tech Meetup brought together the entrepreneurial world of America in a unique event that combined outstanding conferences by international experts with the classic networking space.
A large marquee, specially set up for the occasion, welcomed the more than 1000 attendees who arrived at the Atchugarry Foundation, despite the constant rain. Entrepreneurs, executives, investors and the main technological leaders of the region gathered at this new edition, consolidating the success of the summer's benchmark event for the technology sector.
The presentations were opened by the executive director of Uruguay XXI, Antonio Carámbula, who highlighted Uruguay's attractiveness as a destination for international investment in technology. In this sense, he stressed that the country has "everything to develop great businesses: trust, technology, talent and quality of life".
Luis Alberto Moreno, president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), was the second guest to take the stage, and in a brief speech he invited the audience to generate changes and open new paths that accompany the pace of technology, to achieve a collaborative revolution in which ideas and innovation are the focus. "Latin America lost out in the industrial revolution", so now it needs to accompany the technological revolution. "Let this type of event serve to fill us with energy and accelerate growth," he added.
Mariano Mayer, Secretary for Entrepreneurs and SMEs of the Argentinean Ministry of Production, presented the experience of the "Argentina Emprende" plan, aimed at supporting and promoting entrepreneurs, fostering human capital and strengthening entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystems throughout the country.
Then it was the turn of the first keynote speaker of the meeting, Zachary Aron, director of Deloitte US in financial services and technology. In his presentation, the expert addressed the trends in technology and highlighted that in the future we will have to move towards "inclusion", "self-determination", "collaboration" and "exploration". Aron invited the audience to be open and "enjoy the unpredictable, because that is what the future is all about".
Diego Oppenheimer, founder and CEO of Algorithmia, was interviewed by one of the organisers of Punta Tech, Pablo Brenner, and talked about his venture and the main challenges that every entrepreneur faces. He also highlighted the high level of Uruguayan companies.
The first part of the event was closed by Aharon Aharon, director of the Israel Innovation Institute, who gave a presentation on the impact of the Hi Tech industry on the country's economy. Aharon highlighted the important role played by the government, together with private companies and academia in the development of innovation in Israel, and presented some numbers that demonstrate this. 8.3% of jobs, 12.3% of the business sector's GDP and 50% of industrial exports in Israel come from the Hi-Tech industry.
The expert ended his presentation by inviting Uruguayan entrepreneurs to visit Israel for inspiration and to create cooperation links between the two countries.
Source: Montevideo Portal
Connect