16-17 November 2026 | Tampa, FL

SPEAKER

Dr. John Licato, PhD

TIDES brings together a diverse group of leaders shaping Tampa Bay’s role in the global economy. Speakers will include executives and experts from ports, airports, economic development organizations, logistics, international business, investment, and trade, offering insight into how Tampa’s global connections can create new opportunities for exporters, investors, and businesses.

SPEAKER FOR FOLLOWING TRACKS

ABOUT

John Licato, PhD is an Associate Professor at the USF Bellini College of AI, Cybersecurity and Computing. He is Director of the USF Advancing Machine and Human Reasoning (AMHR) Lab, and founder/CEO of AI startup Actualization AI, Inc. He designed and teaches the natural language processing course (the field that created ChatGPT) at USF, and his lab’s mission is to not only make AI smarter, but to use those advances to make people reason better as well. His research expertise lies in AI, NLP, human reasoning, cognitive modeling, and legal / regulatory reasoning, with over 100 peer-reviewed publications. He has been featured in outlets such as NPR’s Marketplace Tech, ABC Action News, Forbes, and the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

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TIDES is an initiative of Tampa Sister Cities, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
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