As a Black medical student, Malone Mukwende was only taught to recognize clinical signs of disease on white skin. But many diseases look different on darker skin tones, leading to misdiagnosis, poor treatment, and even death. As a result, Mukwende launched BlackandBrownSkin. Through innovative tools like the Mind the Gap handbook, the Hutano app, and, most recently, the “Diagnosing Skin of Colour” digital quiz, Mukwende is revolutionizing care for Black and Brown patients. Red rashes, pale skin, blue lips “On arrival at medical school, I noticed a lack of teaching
When a Discord user leaked unreleased Frank Ocean tracks on Discord, fans on the platform’s music forums clamored to grab hold of the tracks. However, it has since turned out that most, if not all, of the tracks were AI-generated fakes, according Motherboard (part of VICE Media Group). “Everyone started to believe it” Frank Ocean fans have been yearning for fresh material from the elusive singer, whose last full album, “Blonde,” was released in 2016. According to Motherboard a scammer who goes by the handle “mourningassasin” decided to commission a
Shepherd is the “world’s first Bible app that recommends verses based on your needs.” The Bible is the most widely read book in the world, but increasingly, Christians are opting for app-versions over the physical book. As YouVersion’s Bible App reaches the colossal milestone of 100 million downloads—joining major brands like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter—one Black-owned Bible app is growing in popularity. “It’s more like having a daily chat with a good friend, a friend who always knows the best part of the Bible to share with you.” Samuel Abaka-Wood, Shepherd founder Introducing Shepherd Shepherd,
In 2021, Jack Dorsey’s company, Block Inc (formerly known as Square), agreed to acquire Tidal for $306 million. This deal made Jay-Z a board member of Block Inc and left many wondering whether Dorsey had been finessed into buying the relatively small streaming service at a premium price. Block agreed in March 2021 to pay $396 million in stock and cash for an 87.5% stake in Tidal. After adjustments, it paid $237.3 million for an 86.2% stake, according to Reuters. Jay-Z joined Block’s board after the purchase and remains a
Tade Oyerinde is empowering students to complete their first two years of college without taking on any debt through his community college startup Campus. As per Forbes, Campus has secured $29 million in a Series A funding round led by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Discord founder Jason Citron to expand the college. Other investors in the round include Figma founder Dylan Field; former head of Stripe Lachy Groom; Bloomberg Beta; Founders Fund; Rethink Education; Reach Capital and Precursor Ventures. Students and professors are struggling In 2018, Oyerinde conceived the
Sabrina Thompson, a NASA aerospace engineer and founder of streetwear brand Girl In Space Club (GISC), is using her passion for sneakers to ignite the curiosity of young minds in science, space, and technology. The 38-year-old’s initiative, STEMulating Art, is bridging the gap between creativity and technical skills for young minds. Designing a pair of kicks for the moon Thompson noticed that while kids were excited to meet a rocket scientist like herself, they had trouble connecting with the technical aspects of her work. Determined to bring space exploration down
Data journalist Mona Chalabi has won a Pulitzer Prize for her “striking illustrations that combine statistical reporting with keen analysis to help readers understand the immense wealth and economic power of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.” The 36-year-old’s award-winning illustrations were published in a New York Times piece entitled “9 Ways To Imagine Jeff Bezos’ Wealth” last year. POCIT sat down with Chalabi back in 2015 for a candid discussion about her work as a data journalist. “A data journalist is one who uses data as much as they possibly can
Black media mogul Byron Allen, the owner of Allen Media Group (AMG), has hit McDonald’s with another massive lawsuit, claiming the corporation has lied about its commitment to Black-owned media. Last week, Allen’s Entertainment Studios Networks Inc and Weather Group LLC filed a lawsuit against McDonald’s seeking damages in excess of $100 million for fraud/false promise, violating California Civil Code 1711. The law holds corporations to their public promises and thereby redresses corporate fraud. Fraud and False Promises In May 2021, McDonald’s pledged to increase its advertising spend with Black-owned
Akash Nigam, the co-founder and CEO of leading avatar company Genies, is spearheading the adoption of ChatGPT within his organization. According to Business Insider, Nigam is spending $2,400 a month on ChatGPT Plus accounts for his 120 employees to cut costs and unlock new levels of productivity. “I’m a pretty frugal, stingy person,” Nigam told the Business Insider. “But in my mind, this is for the health and growth of the company.” By automating monotonous tasks, such as answering coding queries, creating technical roadmaps, and generating creative briefs, Nigam says
The Safe Place, a free minority mental health app geared towards the Black community, has added a “Suicide Support = No Cops” virtual chat wall. The Safe Place founder, Jasmin Pierre, tweeted: “Black folks who use “The Safe Place” app (in the Android and IOS stores) can now chat about suicidal ideation… without the fear of law enforcement potentially killing them just for feeling suicidal.” “I hope this feature truly helps Black folks in our community who may need it.” Pierre says the new feature is a response to recent
