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Wednesday's Afternoon Update
What you need to know about Florida today
U.S. Supreme Court to weigh Florida Medicaid fight
The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to take up a dispute about how much money Florida’s Medicaid program should be able to recoup after a legal settlement involving a Lee County girl who suffered catastrophic injuries when she was struck by a truck after getting off a school bus in 2008. The case, which justices will hear Jan. 10, has drawn attention from officials across the country. More from the News Service of Florida.
Luminar Tech founder devotes $70 million for new Orlando charitable fund
Austin Russell, the 26-year-old Orlando tech genius and billionaire, is plunging into the philanthropy sector with a personal donation of $70 million in stock to create a charitable fund in Central Florida — though it has yet to be determined how the money will be spent. “This may be the biggest gift ever made in Orlando,” said Mark Brewer, president and CEO of the Central Florida Foundation, the nonprofit institution partnering with Russell to set up the fund and decide how to use it. More from the Orlando Sentinel.
Florida Trend Exclusive
Miami-based company targets productivity with AI
In the past two decades, the construction industry has seen an average annual increase in worker productivity of only 1%, according to McKinsey Global Institute, the research arm of consulting giant McKinsey & Co. The manufacturing industry, by contrast, has a productivity growth rate of 3.6%. Miami-based Togal.ai believes artificial intelligence can improve productivity in the construction industry. More from Florida Trend.
Tampa’s Straz Center lineup jarred by coronavirus concerns
The coronavirus is once again messing with Tampa’s stage schedules. The David A. Straz Jr. Center for the Performing Arts has postponed Jobsite Theater’s scheduled January production of Romeo & Juliet by a week. And a show called Drag Queen Christmas was canceled on Monday because some of the cast and crew tested positive. ”The Straz Center’s rigorous testing protocols caught positive cases before anyone on the production team entered our facility and prevented any spread of positive cases,” a statement from the center said. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Sun Sentinel signs deal to print eight Gannett newspapers, including USA Today
The South Florida Sun Sentinel will start printing the daily editions of eight newspapers that belong to the national Gannett Co. chain next month. Effective Jan. 25, the Palm Beach Post, Palm Beach Daily News, Stuart News, Port St. Lucie News, Indian River News, Fort Myers News-Press, Naples Daily News and USA Today all will be produced by the Sun Sentinel’s printing presses in Deerfield Beach. Last year, the Sun Sentinel entered into a contract to print and package the Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald newspapers. More from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Profile
CEO of AmeriKooler takes aim at 'Goliath'
Several years back, Gian Carlo Alonso decided he needed a competitive benchmark against which to judge progress at the walk-in refrigerator and freezer manufacturer his father founded in Hialeah. The 60-employee AmeriKooler was a bit player in the field. Alonso decided his company should aspire to the same level of success as the industry leader. “Let’s go after Goliath, if we’re going to go after someone,” he says.
» More from Florida Trend.
Out of the Box
Clearwater Beach has a new crypto-themed restaurant with “Dogedog” hot dogs
The hanging art inside a new bistro on Clearwater Beach depicts rocket ships, bitcoin symbols, quotes from Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos and colorful illustrations of the dog meme from dogecoin. The unique decor has a purpose, said Ricardo Varona. It’s meant to get customers talking about cryptocurrencies, or digital money on a decentralized platform called the blockchain, said Varona, the owner of Crypto Street Restaurant.
» Read more from the Tampa Bay Times.
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