Ripe or Not? AI Knows. An FSU student is letting AI take a bite out of food waste, using tech to judge avocados more accurately than the squeeze test ever could. Meanwhile, the Florida Deep Tech Venture Summit puts the spotlight on the Sunshine State’s growing influence in space, defense, and deep tech innovation. Welcome to a future where cutting-edge technology is shaping both what we eat and how we lead. 🥑🚀
Quick Summary
In this 548th edition, for local & state tech:
Food Tech: Reduce Avocado Waste
Event Recap: The Florida Deep Tech Venture Summit
Featured: CityClips | Share Your Story
FL Tech Events
FOOD TECH
AI MEETS AVOCADOS
Image Source: FSU News
🍐🤖 How an FSU Student Is Cutting Food Waste | FSU News
Florida State University doctoral student Zhengao Li helped develop a smartphone-based AI system that can predict avocado firmness (ripeness) and internal quality using images and spectral data—without cutting the fruit open. The goal is to make ripeness detection faster, cheaper, and non-destructive.
Using 1,400 avocado images collected over an eight-day room-temperature storage period, the AI model predicted ripeness with nearly 92% accuracy and detected whether avocados were fresh or rotten with over 84% accuracy, showing strong potential for practical use. ✨
Despite high demand, avocados were chosen because nearly 40% are wasted globally due to spoilage and handling challenges. In the UK alone, more than 50,000 tons of avocados are wasted each year—making this technology especially impactful.
If adopted widely, the system could help farmers harvest at the right time, companies plan storage and delivery more efficiently, and consumers choose the best time to eat their avocados, supporting a more sustainable and less wasteful food system.
Li sees this as just the beginning. Future versions could run on IoT or edge devices, work in real time, and adapt to other foods by sharing visual and spectral features—bringing AI-powered quality checks from farms and warehouses straight into homes. 🏠
EVENT RECAP
DEEP TECH SUMMIT
Image Source: The Orlando Real
🚀 Florida’s Deep Tech Moment Takes Center Stage | KHON2
The Florida Deep Tech Venture Summit, held on Dec. 11, 2025, in Lake Nona, brought together 175 founders, investors, federal innovation leaders, and aerospace and defense executives for a sold-out, one-day event focused on space, defense, and deep tech innovation.
Leaders emphasized that Florida already has the core ingredients for deep tech leadership—spaceport infrastructure, aerospace and defense heritage, strong research universities, and a growing venture ecosystem—and the Summit served as a platform to connect and amplify these assets.
Discussions explored how venture capital, federal funding, and non-dilutive capital can work together to help engineering-driven startups scale, particularly in national-security and dual-use technologies. ⚙️
Keynote speaker Greg Autry (UCF) underscored Florida’s unique position in the global space economy, noting that declining launch costs and rapid growth in low-Earth orbit present major opportunities beyond tourism. 🌏
With support from organizations like Space Florida and JPMorganChase, organizers announced plans to reconvene this year—signaling growing confidence that Florida is emerging as a national hub for space, defense, and deep tech innovation.
FEATURED
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STEM EVENTS
Image Source: Challenger Learning Center of Tallahassee via FB
Thursday, Jan. 15
Science Night January 2026 | Thursday, Jan. 15 | 6:30 PM | Leroy Collins Leon County Main Public Library, 200 W. Park Ave. | Learn More
📎 Innovations & Libations Networking Event featuring CityClips | Thursday, Jan. 15 | Domi Station, 914 Railroad Ave. | Free | Reserve a Spot | Learn More
CityClips Ribbon Cutting: 4:30 PM to 5 PM
Happy Hour Celebration: 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Friday to Saturday, Jan. 16 to 17
Sunday, Jan. 18
Book Event at Midtown Reader | Sunday, Jan. 18 | 4 PM | Midtown Reader, 1123 Thomasville Rd. | Free | Learn More
Saturdays, until Jan. 24
Celebrate the Season with STEM Fun and Sweet Creations at the Leon County Public Library | Learn More
Saturday, Jan. 17 | 1 PM | Eastside Branch Library, 1583 Pedrick Rd., and Fort Braden Branch Library, 16327 Blountstown Highway
Saturday, Jan. 24 | 1 PM | Lake Jackson Branch Library, 3840 North Monroe St., and Dr. B.L. Perry, Jr. Branch Library, 2817 S. Adams St.
Tuesday, Jan. 27
Venture Funding 101: Fundamentals from a Private Equity Investor | Tuesday, Jan. 27 | 10 AM | IGNITE Tallahassee, 1729 W. Paul Dirac Dr. | Register
2026 Power Forward Speaker Series by First Commerce and FSU Division of Research | Tuesday, Jan. 27 | Ruby Diamond Concert Hall | Main Floor – $20, Balcony – $15, Student (ID Required at Door) – $10 | Learn More
Image Source: JH Creative
Tune in for our 105th episode tomorrow on LinkedIn, Facebook, or YouTube, powered by JH Creative. We are excited to have May Wang, Student Engagement Program Coordinator at FSU - Jim Moran College of Entrepreneurship. Got questions? Join us Live!
- Team CityClips ([email protected])
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