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Dev pushed to Orlando by 2017 hurricane publishes cycling app

Marco Santana
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Dev pushed to Orlando by 2017 hurricane publishes cycling app

Axel Rivera picked up a new, socially distant hobby and activity in 2020: he started cycling.

As a programmer, it was only natural he considered how he could make his experience simpler.

“Whenever I get a new hobby, my brain starts to work and I look for potential opportunities,” he said, noting that before he started cycling, he never really looked at weather apps. “I started to ask questions to my cycling friends and read posts on Facebook groups and decided that a weather app for athletes was worth my effort.”

The result is Apollo Weather, a fully customizable iOS weather app. It is meant to provide information to cyclists, runners and other active outdoor people.

Rivera has experience as an app developer.

He was the man behind Banco Popular’s mobile app, which he built while working for an app development company in his native Puerto Rico.

In addition, he built several functionalities for apps used by the Puerto Rican government.

He said one of the coolest things he experienced was seeing a huge billboard for the Banco Popular app while driving in Puerto Rico.

“I was like, ‘Hey, I did that!’” he said. “It was a fantastic feeling.”

When Hurricane Maria battered Puerto Rico in 2017, Rivera relocated to Orlando. He brought more than 10 years of experience in app building along with him.

“As a developer, I believe 100 percent in ‘eating your own dog food,’” he said. “I only develop apps that I plan to use myself, outside of contract work. That’s the only way I can motivate myself to work nights and weekends on a project.”

Rivera considers Apollo Weather ideal for athletes and outdoor activity enthusiasts.

The forecasts earn a rating based upon a user’s ideal conditions.

The hourly ratings appear within a typical 10-day forecast so users can identify the best times to train outside.

Rivera plans to add features like route analysis, which will offer weather conditions that follows along a cyclist’s route at their expected arrival time.

“Once I started cycling, my needs changed,” said Rivera, who averages between 90 and 100 miles a week. “I had set my goal to 75 miles per week. I had to make sure I reached it, no matter what. But Florida weather is unpredictable.”

That was the idea behind Apollo Weather.

As he continues to work on contracts alongside his own mobile applications, Rivera had advice for those who are either just starting out or want to move toward publishing their own apps.

“It’s OK to do the online courses and tutorials, but you have to start a project at some point,” he said. “If you keep jumping from one tutorial to another, you’re just reading the same stuff repeatedly. Nothing beats hands-on experience.”

She learned from Hollywood’s ‘Godfather of Gore.’ Now, she helps soldiers.

Marco Santana
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She learned from Hollywood’s ‘Godfather of Gore.’ Now, she helps soldiers.

Anna Lopez’s introduction into makeup and special effects goes all the way back to when she was 7 years old.

A friend of hers introduced her to a YouTube channel devoted to creating things like scabs out of cocoa powder or chocolate milk mix.

Almost immediately, she was hooked.

“I ended up bingeing the videos,” she said. “Something about it just switched on my brain. Of all the things I was ever interested in, I kept coming back to that.”

The videos taught viewers how to duplicate effects that Lopez saw in Hollywood blockbusters.

It led to her attending an effects program created by Tom Savini, dubbed by some as the “Godfather of Gore,” who has worked on classics like “Dawn of the Dead” and “Friday the 13th.”

Now, the 20-year-old Lopez uses the training in the Pittsburgh-area program to help Orlando tech company SIMETRI build realistic mannequins that aid soldiers in training.

SIMETRI’S growth in Orlando

The mannequins are built with an intricate series of tubes and sensors which mimic the human body.

SIMETRI CEO Angela Alban started the business in 2009, creating a business that quickly connected with Orlando’s deep military ecosystem.

She has grown that company to roughly 45 employees, including effects artists, programmers and even on-site chemists who serve as consultants to some of SIMETRI’s military customers.

“Our strength is the team and the diverse skillsets required that is very unique,” Alban said. “Bringing that together and creating a culture where it can all work is one of the things we consider our ‘secret sauce.’”

The company last year moved into a new 15,000-square-foot location in Winter Park.

While SIMETRI has primarily focused on defense, it recently made inroads into the medical industry. Alban has partnered with a Norwegian company with operations in New York, Texas and Tennessee.

A range of skillsets create SIMETRI

Recruitment efforts for SIMETRI as it grows pulls from a variety of backgrounds.

Evan Shafran, for instance, is a musician and filmmaker who recognized early on the potential of having a hand in saving a life.

He learned some about biology from his physician father growing up but this, he said, is different.

“I don’t know a lot of different venues for me to be able to be creative, work with my hands but also be extraordinarily helpful for medical and military people,” he said. “It feels good. It’s another level of creation and creativity.”

That’s partially why Lopez got into this industry, as well.

“Entertainment is fun and I love it,” said Lopez, who is originally from Jacksonville. “But I wanted to do something that was quantifiably helping people.”

At Savini’s school, Lopez learned how to work with latex, silicon and even learned how to detail eyeballs, which Lopez said included painting them using paintbrushes that included a single strand of brush.

“It’s very meticulous,” she said.

Lopez landed at SIMETRI late last year, seeking work that would give her steady hours and not be seasonal.

Although her father was initially suspicious about the long-term viability of the job, her mother went to Facebook to show her friends the visually stunning job her daughter had landed.

For Lopez, it was a matter of trying to use her skills to make a difference.

Although her initial interest was a potential Hollywood gig, she said the difference between that and her job at SIMETRI is the importance of getting everything just right.

“The main difference is how they feel,” she said. “When you’re fixing someone, you’re not just looking at it but also physically interacting. You don’t want someone taken aback when they work on a real person.”

Acquisition strengthens Kavaliro’s Salesforce position

Marco Santana
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Acquisition strengthens Kavaliro’s Salesforce position

An Orlando professional services company that specializes in integrating the popular and powerful customer service, analytics and more platform Salesforce has strengthened its position as a leader in the software through an acquisition.

Kavaliro, which provides technical, professional and workforce consulting services, announced that it had acquired assets and employees of Austin-based Sansotti Technologies.

Financial terms of the deal were not immediately revealed.

Kavaliro President Mark Moore said the acquisition will further expand the company’s ability to integrate Salesforce and its related applications.

“We see a lot of opportunities for our continuously expanding Salesforce practice and this acquisition is a strategic move in that direction,” he said in a press release.

The move creates a team of more than 30 people who now focus on Salesforce for Kavaliro.

Sansotti’s platform provides expertise and staff advisers to businesses who are developing a presence on Salesforce.

Kavaliro also reported in the release that it expects to surpass $50 million in revenue for the first time this year.

Defense industry CEO says unity will drive Orlando tech further

Marco Santana
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Defense industry CEO says unity will drive Orlando tech further

John Brooks has no doubts about Orlando as the best place to continue to build his 11-year-old military and simulation business Mass Virtual.

He didn’t need to look much further last week than the annual defense technology show I/ITSEC for proof.

However, he says the next step in the ecosystem’s evolution will be a coming together, so to speak.

“It is siloed,” he said. “If you get board membership that is all of like-minded individuals, that’s not a good thing.”

Brooks’ business was one of the hundreds to showcase their wares for military officials and others in the business at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference.

The annual show is one of the biggest in the world and takes over the Orange County Convention Center each year.

Virtual reality is defense in 2022

Mass Virtual showed off an immersive, virtual reality-driven environment that takes students into a virtual hangar to train on various aircraft.

The program took users onto a tarmac alongside several military planes, walking them through a training module that would allow for group sessions for schools and military entities.

Brooks said I/ITSEC’s presence in Orlando certainly drives the conversation.

“Many people do not think of Orlando as a tech hub,” he said. “But [those people are] more silent because technology definitely drives the majority of business here.”

While Mass Virtual has been at I/ITSEC in the past showing off its technology, the floor also included plenty of first timers or, perhaps, second timers.

Orlando firms show well at I/ITSEC

Jason Irving and his engineering firm Engenium made their debut as a booth host in 2021.

This year, the Orlando company returned because, he said, the event is a “must attend” for anyone in Orlando’s robust simulation and training industry.

“Having a booth is instant credibility,” he said. “When you have one, everyone here knows you exist in this industry.”

Irving said the company had a steady flow of visitors at its booth, including several that planned follow-up meetings after the show.

“This is how we showcase the work we do,” he said. “It’s one less barrier.”

The show served as a kind of “Welcome to Orlando” for HAVIK, which only recently announced it had moved its headquarters from California to Central Florida.

The company builds a portable, self-contained virtual reality training system for the U.S. Special Forces, military and allies.

“When I joined, I was focused on making sure we found a good home base for talent and that was business-friendly for our industry,” COO Glenn Banton Sr. said.

On the floor, Banton said I/ITSEC’s presence in Orlando also contributed to the decision.

“I/ITSEC is the Olympics of the defense industry,” he said. “We need to use this as a platform to show off what we have.”

Brooks has no doubt that building in Orlando benefits his military tech and simulation business.

But a small push could take the community even further, he said.

“It’s all here but it just needs someone to mix it up,” he said. “That will drive this community even further.”

Falcons exec at IAAPA on upcoming Punta Cana theme park

Marco Santana
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Falcons exec at IAAPA on upcoming Punta Cana theme park

Falcons Beyond has moved beyond building digital content for theme park customers to building its own, full-scale, front-to-back theme park.

Katmandu Punta Cana is the second in a series of theme parks built by the Orlando company and is expected to debut sometime in early 2023.

The high-tech attraction leverages the company’s intellectual property and technological expertise to provide an immersive experience for visitors.

Falcons Executive Vice President of Technology Saham Ali sat down to chat with Orlando Tech News about the park and other topics.

Among the highlights:

  • He dishes on the theme park, which has been in development for several years.
  • The company understood life spans of theme park products are finite so they developed replayability factors into the features they put into their attractions. For example, a personalized experience and gamification of attending a theme park.
  • Coming from a TV/film industry, he’s been excited about the convergence between gaming, TV and entertainment.

You can see the entire interview below.

IAAPA’s return full of big announcements, deals … and bubbles

Marco Santana
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IAAPA’s return full of big announcements, deals … and bubbles

Every year, the theme park industry comes to Orlando for a weeklong visual
tour de force.

This year, for the first time, Orlando Tech News attended with a visuals
team to document the crazy and cool things that we saw on the show floor.

Of course, this is not comprehensive.

Even with a four-day outing to the show, we still missed some things.

It’s that big of a deal.

Now, we will use the material we collected several times on our social media
across the next several months.

However, below, we have a collection of some of the cool scenes we saw at
the Orange County Convention
Center.

Photos by Marco Santana and Steven
Seidman.

 
 
 
 

IAAPA returns to high-energy conference after pandemic slump

Marco Santana
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IAAPA returns to high-energy conference after pandemic slump

When Brandon Naids was a kid, growing up in Central Florida, he wanted to design rollercoasters.

He became a ride operator at Universal Studios and spent time as an engineering intern there.

Now, as a CEO of a company that designs virtual reality experiences, he attends IAAPA every year and is surrounded by leaders in an industry he has always enjoyed.

Of course, among the options his company Talon Simulations offers its virtual riders? A virtual rollercoaster.

“I am always excited when IAAPA comes through,” said Naids, whose booth on the IAAPA floor saw a steady stream of curious visitors.

This year’s version of IAAPA represents the seventh time he has attended the world’s largest theme park industry trade show.

IAAPA returned to the Orange County Convention Center in full force, one year after the coronavirus pandemic disrupted what had been steadily growing attendance figures.

“This really feels like it’s our first IAAPA,” said Naids, noting that the last two years have been rough on the industry. “It’s exciting and the whole vibe has changed.”

Across a 515,000-square-foot exhibit area, more than 10,000 companies saw a resurgent energy, with businesses looking to discover new partnerships or reconnect with old friends.

A walk across the floor showed off the latest in technology in what has become an industry rooted in tech.

Virtual reality spaces, rollercoasters and all sorts of simulators provided the fuel to a buzz that far outpaced that of the last couple of years.

While the show annually serves as a great place for smaller companies to connect with potential clients, the industry’s biggest players usually have a few tricks up their sleeves, as well.

SeaWorld, for example, unveiled its latest ride vehicle, which will be part of its spring 2023 surf coaster “Pipeline.”

Dollywood, meanwhile, announced that it had inked a deal with a design company to unveil custom ride vehicles for the largest attraction in the park’s 36-year-history.

“For me, being able to work in a world like this, you never plan it,” said Derek Blankenship of Orlando-based Jaycon Systems. “It’s kind of like a fantasy. You get to live in a fantasyland and design the technology around what the future of the industry will be.”

Jaycon has built crucial systems for one of the largest themed entertainment companies in the world as well as Virgin Voyages.

The 60-person company employs most of its workers in Melbourne and plans to next year double its Orlando workforce, which right now stands at about 7 people.

A return to pre-pandemic attendance levels at IAAPA offers businesses a boost in several ways, said Saham Ali, vice president of technology for Falcon’s Creative Group in Orlando.

“The energy is back in the air,” he said. “It’s very exciting to see our partners and our friends that we have seen for many years are finally back out.”

“The industry went through some tough times, but our rebound is killer,” he said. “We didn’t get to see some of our friends who were developing very interesting things. We are finally seeing that innovation because they are out here on the floor.”

The appeal of IAAPA is the range of businesses that have a presence on the floor.

It’s essentially a start-to-finish group of industries.

Among the groups sectioned off in the space were food vendors, prize creators and escape rooms.

“This show allows us to see other people in our space and see some things that we perhaps have not thought of,” said Steve Croughan, operations director for Escapology in Orlando. “It’s great to meet them here.”

He attributes the success of his industry, which has seen consistent growth since it emerged in the early 2000s and even more so since the pandemic encouraged people to plan more family outings, to one simple reason.

“It’s escapism, really,” he said. “You feel like a kid again.”

At Synapse, Orlando signals emergence in gaming, VR

Marco Santana
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0
At Synapse, Orlando signals emergence in gaming, VR

Orlando has long been associated with Mickey Mouse, Universal Studios and all things theme parks, at least from afar.
But as sectors like video games, virtual reality and location-based entertainment grow, so, too, could the idea that Orlando has become more than just a tourist destination.
It could become simultaneously a rising force in technology, meaning its economy could be poised for a hefty surge as more companies and industries dive into these disciplines.
“Orlando has a large concentration of the nerd culture,” said Jason Ambler, president of digital media for Orlando-based Falcon’s Beyond. “That ties into games and building a community of people around the unique aspects of entertainment. That’s a big part of it. It’s special to not only make great entertainment but be innovative in its delivery.”

Synapse brings tech together

The recent Synapse Orlando event had a healthy dose of entertainment-based technology representation from Central Florida.
Ambler took the stage for multiple panels, along with Electronic Arts’ highest-ranking executive based in Orlando Daryl Holt, 302 Interactive CEO Kyle Morrand and Falcon’s Executive Vice President Saham Ali.
The message sent, while not overt, was clear: Orlando tech has depth when it comes to gaming and entertainment tech.
“A lot of this growth happened organically and it has not really been drum beating,” Ambler said. “Up until this point, this community has been looking to support the industry that is here.”
The assets that exist in Orlando appear to add up to a strong showing in themed entertainment technology.
Schools like UCF’s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy, Full Sail University and the DAVE School specialize, to an extent, in teaching skills related to video game development.
Add in the volume of students in the region, a budding independent video game community and the presence of larger companies like EA and Iron Galaxy and you get a formula that works.
Holt said he has been encouraged by the region’s embrace of The Metaverse, with economic leaders launching an effort to brand the region as “The MetaCenter.”
“It’s an incredible opportunity for us as a community,” Holt said of the power of play and technology. “Play and gaming are the on-ramps to those experiences that will shape the future.”

Gaming can drive economy

Electronic Arts recently unveiled a high-tech downtown Orlando campus that now hosts 1,000 employees, more than 40 percent higher than pre-pandemic levels.
To be clear, tourism will never be an afterthought in Central Florida. 
Beyond even the major theme parks like Walt Disney World and Universal Studios, there is a healthy ecosystem of small- and mid-sized attractions throughout Orlando.
Still, technology based upon virtual reality and other technologies often associated with gaming have the potential to drive Orlando’s economy.
“Where Orlando shines when it comes to gaming technology is its natural integration with a variety of industries to help solve real-world problems,” said Morrand, whose firm uses video game-related skillsets to develop applications and products for companies in sectors like healthcare and entertainment. “Like Walt Disney’s vision for EPCOT Center, as emerging technologies seek to culminate in a cohesive Metaverse, Orlando will continue to be a model of the future for what our industries and communities can become when they work together.”

Leaning into “The MetaCenter”

As Orlando pushes further into its “The MetaCenter” rebrand, the businesses that exist here could adapt and lean into that persona.
Falcon’s, which employs about 100 in the region, has been an example of businesses that can flex and adapt.
While the company’s roots lie in digital experiences, the firm has done more work recently in building physical theme park attractions than it ever has in its 20-plus year run in Orlando.
“We have this convergence of entertainment, tourism and industry here that, when we work together becomes a fairly large community,” Ambler said. “There is a culture of innovation here because we have all of these unique elements in one place.”

Orlando’s MyRadar chosen by NOAA to develop tech to detect wildfires

Marco Santana
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Orlando’s MyRadar chosen by NOAA to develop tech to detect wildfires

An Orlando tech company has joined the battle against wildfires through a new partnership that could put its popular weather app to use.

MyRadar’s app has been downloaded more than 50 million times and has more than 14 million active users.

The company’s partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will allow the firm to develop and demonstrate technology that uses satellite-based information to detect and mitigate wildfires.

The award “allows MyRadar to tailor our satellite-based AI approach to near-fire detection and alerting use cases through laboratory and field data collection,” MyRadar’s Chief Scientist and COO Sarvesh Garimella said in a news release.

The company has a constellation of satellites that will use its onboard artificial intelligence and machine learning to process sensor data, allowing unique forecasting of potential wildfire risks.

Users on the ground can then be alerted to impending wildfires.

MyRadar launched its app in 2008 and has been a leader in the weather space ever since. The company now employs 40 people.

“Ultimately the research being done under the NOAA award will bring improved wildfire resilience to bear to help combat the increasing threat,” said Andy Green, MyRadar’s CEO. “This will allow us to provide life-saving, advance intelligence directly through the MyRadar app to its tens of millions of users as one additional tool to help mitigate the destructive effects of wildfires.”

MyRadar launched three satellites in May.

Synapse CEO: Florida’s regions should keep own identity while collaborating

Marco Santana
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0
Synapse CEO: Florida’s regions should keep own identity while collaborating

Brian Kornfeld cringes whenever he hears that any ecosystem strives to be the “next Silicon Valley.”

What they should be doing, he said, is capitalizing on their own strengths while building community.

It’s the approach he tries to spread as he builds Synapse Florida, an organization that runs events around the state and will return to Orlando on Friday for the second time.

“Everything is about identity,” Kornfeld said. “What I’ve always loved about Florida is that it tends to be the most authentic state in the country. Keeping our identity and innovative thoughts, leveraging them and using the resources we have here are what will take this community to its max potential.”

As he unwinds from welcoming thousands of innovators, community leaders and entrepreneurs to downtown Orlando on Friday, he chatted briefly with Orlando Tech News, sharing his team’s mission along with a message to those who remain on the fence about engaging the community his team at Synapse is building.

Spoiler alert: He says you should be a part of it.

Q: Thanks for joining me Brian. Give me and my readers an idea of Synapse Florida, why it’s important to the community.

A: Synapse’s mission has always been to make Florida an incredible place to innovate and grow innovative organizations. We want the community to scale, start new companies and hire talent. We focus on the entire state because it just adds so many opportunities and resources together. Florida is a resource-rich state when you think of our university system, talent pipeline and some of the companies that are here.

Q: You have hosted several events in Orlando, including last Friday’s Synapse Orlando event. How important is this community to what you are building at Synapse?

A: Orlando is a big part of that because it’s home to so many of the elements that make up the elements of the Metaverse. We want to spotlight that and get this community engaged locally. We want to give those who are not sure how to engage a first step into opportunities.

Q: Where are we, as a state and community, when it comes to our innovation ecosystem’s growth?

A: A lot of the development that started places like Silicon Valley was done in the 60s and 70s. This takes time. If we can combine efforts and truly act as a community, ask questions like ‘how can I help deliver on collaboration?’ – and not just say we want to – the market will pave its own path. There is no limit to where this can go. For other markets, the future is already scripted. Here, we are in a very cool place because we’re still getting this scripted.

Q: We just had Synapse Orlando. It was phenomenal. What would you say to those who missed out and have hesitated to join this community?

A: Give it one chance. If you don’t [interact], you know exactly what will happen. If you give it a chance, you could open up an opportunity you didn’t realize was there. You might learn something new, meet someone new or find out something you didn’t’ know before.

Q: Finally, what message would you want to share with those who attended?

A: My favorite part of this whole event is not the event days itself. We set this up as a one-day event to propel the community forward for the next 365 days.

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