Jeff Vinik will receive the Innovation Catalyst Award at the Bitcoin and Blockchain Summit • St Pete Catalyst

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Local innovation leader Jeff Vinik will be presented with the inaugural Innovation Catalyst Award at this week’s Bitcoin & Blockchain Summit at Amalie Arena in Tampa.

On behalf of the Florida Bitcoin & Blockchain Summit and the Florida Blockchain Business Association (FBBA), St. Pete Catalyst publisher Joe Hamilton will present the price of the metal, which features Vinik on an artist’s rendering of the piece Metacity Fluent.

Additionally, Hamilton will give Vinik a USB drive that the prize will be loaded onto as a non-fungible token (NFT).

Vinik will receive the award on Friday (November 5), following the opening speech by Cathie Wood of ARK Investment on the second day of the summit. The mayor of Tampa, Jane Castor, and the mayor-elect of St. Petersburg are expected to attend the presentation.

Vinik also owns the Amelia Arena, which hosts the two-day event, and the Tampa Bay Lightning, current Stanley Cup champions.

“Jeff Vinik is building the physical infrastructure that allows us to connect internally to build the virtual infrastructure of the future,” said Chris Krimitsos, founder of the Florida Bitcoin & Blockchain Summit.

Vinik is widely known for its investments in emerging technologies and innovative businesses in Tampa Bay. In particular, he committed $ 10 million to create Embarc Collective in March 2019.

Embarc Collective is a non-profit educational organization focused on technology, innovation and entrepreneurship. Now home to over 100 companies with a total of 234 team members, the collective is the fastest growing startup hub in Florida. In just over 2.5 years, Embarc companies have raised over $ 107 million in venture capital.

In March, Vinik Sports Group launched Backing the Bay, a program that provides free, personalized marketing services to local small businesses in the Tampa Bay area.

“The reason he is the catalyst for innovation is that he designed the physical infrastructure to enable the intentional collisions between people and ideas that spawn innovation.”

Part of this virtual infrastructure of the future consists of platforms such as Metacity. Metacity is a virtual operating system for a physical city and will showcase its latest innovations at the top.

Hamilton, who is also the Network Manager for Metacity and the St. Petersburg Community Manager for the FBBA, believes Vinik’s very presence in the community has inspired the entire Tampa Bay area to innovate.

“Jeff has led many specific initiatives to improve our community, but I think his presence has the greatest impact,” said Hamilton. “His choosing to bring us his level of vision and activation has uplifted our entire region not only to believe – but to expect – that Tampa Bay is one of the best places in the world where feel at home. “

For more information on the Florida Bitcoin and Blockchain Summit, visit their website here.

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