eMerge Americas Techweek to Host Hundreds of Developers and Designers Set to Compete for $30,000 in Cash & Prizes

MIAMI, April 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --  eMerge Americas Techweek will host hundreds of developers, designers and technology enthusiasts vying for $30,000 in prizes at the eMerge Americas Techweek Hackathon.  The Hackathon will bring together competitors from across the Americas from May 2-4 at the University of Miami Life Science and Technology Park's Miami Innovation Center.

The challenge for the Hackathon will be Doing Social Good: Using Technology to Solve Problems in Communities in Emerging Markets.  Refresh Miami, a non-profit organization providing educational content to the Miami tech community since 2006, is working with the development community and engaging more than 8,000 members.  The applications developed by the teams of developers and designers will be judged based on:

• Presentation - Ability to clearly articulate the functionality of the application
• Sophistication - Difficulty of technical implementation
• Functionality - How well the technology works

"The Hackathon is the ultimate event that will engage developers, designers, entrepreneurs and technology enthusiasts in the overall eMerge Americas Techweek event," said Brian Breslin, founder of Refresh Miami.  "This will be a truly unique opportunity for the top developers in South Florida to compete against peers from Latin America and the Caribbean. "  

With support from Amazon Web Services (AWS), .CO and Wexford Science and Technology, a $20,000 cash prize will be awarded to the first place team, $7,500 to the second place team and $2,500 to third place team.  In addition, $100 in AWS Activate Credits will be provided to each participant representing a total value of up to $30,000. The Hackathon will kick off the evening of Friday, May 2 with an informational session and pizza dinner for participants. On Saturday, May 3 the teams will be provided with the APIs and directions for the challenge and the teams will present their applications for final judging on the afternoon of Sunday, May 4.

For more information and criteria to apply for the eMerge Techweek Hackathon competition, please visit http://emergeamericas.org/experience/exhibitions/hackathon.

About eMerge Americas Techweek
eMerge Americas Techweek aims to serve as the catalyst in a movement to establish a technology corridor in Latin America and transform Miami into the technology hub of the Americas.  By connecting global industry leaders, investors, entrepreneurs, academia, and tech enthusiasts, eMerge America focuses on innovation and technology in healthcare, entertainment, finance, government, and education in addressing the most pressing issues of today and provide solutions and resources to continue the rapid advances of the 21st century.  For more information about eMerge Americas Techweek visit: www.emergeamericas.org.

About .CO
.CO is the domain name of choice for innovators and entrepreneurs all over the world. Since launching in 2010, more than 1.5 million .CO domains have been registered by people and companies in more than 200 countries. From startups and small businesses to big brands and multinational corporations, .CO is where big ideas belong on the Web. For more information about .CO, please visit www.go.co or follow us on Twitter @dotCO.

About Wexford Science & Technology
Wexford Science & Technology, LLC, a subsidiary of BioMed Realty Trust, is a real estate investment and development company specializing in comprehensive real estate solutions focused on universities, university-related research parks and healthcare systems.  Wexford brings a unique approach of collaborating with clients to build knowledge communities, which are vibrant, mixed-use, amenity-rich environments that foster innovation. In addition to the University of Miami Life Science and Technology Park, Wexford is currently developing eight additional Knowledge Communities across the U.S, including: the Bio-Research & Development Growth (BRDG) Park at the Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis; Cortex Innovation Community in St. Louis, MO; Hershey Center for Applied Research in Hershey, PA; Innovation Research Park @ ODU in Norfolk, VA; University City Science Center in Philadelphia; University of Maryland BioPark in Baltimore; University Technology Park at IIT in Chicago; and Wake Forest Biotech Place at the Wake Forest Innovative Quarter in Winston-Salem, NC.

SOURCE eMerge Americas Techweek