Making More Unicorns in Miami with The Founder School

From guavas to unicorns: How the Founder School is empowering Miami’s underdogs to build the next big startups.

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Learn how The Founder School helps underrepresented founders in Miami and how it plans to create 100,000 tech jobs in Miami by 2040 in our latest interview with Edrizio De La Cruz.

Miami embodies the American dream, especially for our vibrant, educated immigrant community. It’s where the spirit of entrepreneurship is woven into the fabric of our daily lives.  

Edrizio De La Cruz’s journey—from selling guavas on the streets to selling his fintech company to Mastercard—captures the essence of that dream. 

Now, through The Founder School, he’s empowering underrepresented entrepreneurs to follow in his footsteps. "I want to give others the opportunity to succeed, especially people who don’t typically have access to the tools or funding they need," De La Cruz said in our latest interview. 

This kind of leadership is essential to growing Miami’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. 

Through Opportunity Miami’s Entrepreneurship pillar, we’re focused on accelerating startup and scale-up activity because when our founders thrive, so does our city. With local startups raising $1.53 billion in venture capital in the first half of 2024, it’s clear our momentum is unstoppable. 

Watch our interview with De La Cruz here. You can also listen to the episode on Spotify or Apple iTunes.  

A Vision for Miami

De La Cruz is on a mission to transform Miami into a global hub for tech startups. After selling his fintech company, Arcus Financial Intelligence, to Mastercard in 2021, De La Cruz launched The Founder School. The 12-week program empowers underrepresented founders—especially Black, Latino, and women entrepreneurs—to turn their ideas into scalable businesses without quitting their jobs.

In the U.S. tech workforce, women make up just 25%, with women of color making up less than 10 percent of that group. Black women represent only three percent of women in tech, and Latina women hold an even smaller share at just under two percent.

"The Founder School is about creating a space where these founders can dream big, test ideas, and build successful businesses," De La Cruz said. “My goal is to see 100,000 new tech jobs in Miami by 2040, all driven by diverse, local talent.”

Miami’s transformation into a global tech hub is gaining recognition. In 2021, Miami’s startups raised a record $5.33 billion in venture capital, solidifying its position as one of the fastest-growing tech ecosystems in the U.S. Despite a slight dip in venture activity in 2023, Miami remains a top 10 hub for VC investment. With its proximity to Latin America, favorable tax environment, and growing base of tech talent, Miami is poised to continue expanding. “We will become a hub of entrepreneurship globally, not just domestically,” De La Cruz​ said.

Overcoming Funding Challenges

De La Cruz knows firsthand the challenges minority founders face when raising capital. “We raised $25 million for Arcus, but it was an odyssey,” he recalls. “There’s a huge funding gap for minority founders—less than 2% of venture capital goes to Black and Latino entrepreneurs.”

Despite these challenges, De La Cruz is determined to create more pathways for diverse founders to access the capital and resources they need. “Miami is full of untapped talent, and we’re working to unleash that potential,” he said.

By 2040, De La Cruz envisions Miami as home to multiple unicorns—startups valued at over $1 billion. “When startups are headquartered here, they create high-paying jobs, and those jobs create more entrepreneurs,” he said. “The more startups we have, the more successful founders we’ll create, and the more tech jobs will follow.”

Women in Tech

The Beacon Council recently co-hosted a women in tech event focused on how to fuel the next generation. You can watch our interview with Johanna Mikkola of Tech Equity Miami to learn about the resources needed to build a strong and diverse tech foundation in Miami. We also want to share the recent eMerge Americas Insights report, which reinforces Miami’s position as a tech powerhouse. In the first half of 2024 alone, Miami startups raised $1.53 billion in venture capital, positioning us as a top 10 hub for VC activity nationwide. The report also shows that while national venture activity is down, Miami’s entrepreneurial spirit remains strong, with over 70% of local founders confident about the future of their businesses. These figures highlight the resilience and potential of our ecosystem as we continue empowering diverse founders to drive Miami’s growth.

Juntos ganamos! 

Rodrick T. Miller     

If you have a company or entrepreneur to suggest or an idea to share that relates to building Miami’s future, email us at next@opportunity.miami. We invite you to subscribe to our YouTube channel and follow us on our social media channels. If you were forwarded this newsletter, you can subscribe by clicking here. And if you are new to Opportunity Miami, you can learn about our mission and work here.