Enterprise Florida presented Urban SDK with the EFI Entrepreneur and Job Growth Award during its most recent Board of Directors meeting in Tallahassee. The Jacksonville-based data analytics and visualization company was recognized for its commitment to job growth within the state, as well as its work showcasing Florida as a global leader in innovation.
“This is a proud moment for our company,” said CEO and Co-founder Drew Messer. “We started Urban SDK to do 2 things: help the government transform itself through a modern data management strategy and prove we can build a $100M dollar tech startup out of Jacksonville, Florida. This award further validates our vision.”
Urban SDK was started in 2018 by Messer and COO and Co-founder Justin Dennis. In 2021, the company expanded internationally and tripled its valuation in under 12 months. For 2022, the company forecasts 300% growth, which Dennis believes is due to the company’s best-in-class technology meeting a strong demand in the market.
“Our modern data management system optimizes business decisions and operations through data, and the impact is no clearer than within Florida,” said Dennis. “In Jacksonville, we’re the data management system for the country’s first autonomous public transportation vehicles. Meanwhile, in Tampa Bay and Central Florida we’ve established regional contracts between counties and DOT Districts that give leaders an ability to plan regionally instead of county by county.”
The EFI Entrepreneur and Job Growth Award comes on the heels of Urban SDK closing its Seed Series, which was led by the Florida Opportunity Fund (FOF), Florida-based venture capital firms DeepWork Capital and venVelo, and TechStars.
“Urban SDK and its founders are changing the way we look at the world and embody the purpose and power of investment by the Florida Opportunity Fund,” said Florida Opportunity Fund Executive Director Meredith Pelton. “The Fund proudly supports Urban SDK’s dynamic financial success, team expansion, and state and community investment as Florida continues to fuel innovation.”
“We’re honored to be in the FOF portfolio,” said Messer. “We’re a home-grown Florida business with the state as a majority shareholder. We employ 21 Florida residents with high paying jobs, and we’re building a platform that helps our government innovate at the highest levels. This investment into Urban SDK is evidence that EFI is making Florida the premiere business destination in the world.”
About the EFI Entrepreneur and Job Growth Award
The Enterprise Florida Entrepreneur and Job Growth Award was established by Enterprise Florida in 2019 to recognize Florida businesses that have created jobs and invested in communities across the state.
About Urban SDK
Urban SDK is a data analytics and visualization software that transforms data from the physical world and turns it into intelligence. The platform is a single solution for all data needs — transforming, visualizing, enriching, and managing data for all subscribers.
Source : https://www.newswire.com/news/urban-sdk-receives-the-efi-entrepreneur-and-job-growth-award-21632036
