The rain never seemed to let up and the networking was just as intense. In its tenth year, on Sunday 14th Punta Tech Meet Up lived up to its goal of bringing together entrepreneurs, executives and business people linked to the local and regional technology world.
The sound of the rain and the constant murmur of those for whom networking time seemed to be running out provided the soundtrack to the event that brought together hundreds of people - mostly men, which was noticeable even in the queue for the toilets - in a tent set up at the Atchugarry Foundation.
"This seems like a world apart" commented an attendee when she noticed the number of people that gathered in this space far from the typical noise of a January night in Punta del Este.
The formula
The highlight was the conference by Aharon Aharon, CEO of Israel Innovation, equivalent to the National Agency for Research and Innovation of the country recognised as a Startup Nation. His talk began by explaining the success and cutting-edge image of the country's brand. The army, academia, the number of start-ups, private investment, growing companies, multinational companies and government are the seven points that, according to Aharon, make up the formula for the success of the Israeli innovation ecosystem, a country of 8 million inhabitants that is a global technology hub alongside Silicon Valley.
Size was no excuse for Israel. That is why Aharon invited Uruguay to take advantage of being a small country. Among other tips, he said, was to focus on the transition from entrepreneurship to business, on education and the role of government. "Why does the Israeli public sector invest in the private sector? Because for every dollar invested, it gets US$ 5 to US$ 8 in economic contribution," Aharon said.
The head of Israel's equivalent of the ANII also provided some figures on the impact of hi-tech - Hi-Tech - on Israel's economy. The sector accounts for 8.3% of jobs, 12% of business GDP and 50% of industrial exports.
Among the three main speakers was US-based Uruguayan and CEO of Algorithmia, Diego Oppenheimer, who was interviewed by one of the founders of Punta Tech Meet Up, Pablo Brenner. Oppenheimer's startup made headlines a few months ago after receiving the first public investment from a fund created by Google for Artificial Intelligence companies.
For the Uruguayan, who worked at Microsoft for six years before setting up his own business, the level of local companies is "extremely high": "Working with American companies is different from working with companies from any other country," he said, noting that Uruguayans have the advantage of understanding more than other countries how to work with these companies.
Asked to offer advice for the entrepreneurs present, Oppenheimer said that the most important thing to keep in mind is that ideas "can be had by anyone", that the most important thing is execution and that there is no time like the moment when a customer repeats a purchase.
Enjoying the unpredictable
The first of the conferences at the event, organised by the Lucero production company, was given by Zachary Aron, head of Financial and Technology Services at Deloitte, who spoke about four trends in technology that impact society: inclusion, self-determination, collaboration and exploration. The first is about solving problems that go beyond the individual, such as access to connectivity and electricity for all people. The second is about moving beyond immediate needs; the third is about reaching new levels of collaboration with others to drive greater outcomes; and the fourth is about enjoying the unpredictable. "What we think is going to happen, probably won't happen the way we want it to," said Aron, who encouraged innovation with unpredictability in mind. "Technology with all its advances will have no control or influence over human creativity and experience," he said.
Source: The Observer
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