Black Black Friday is a new initiative in Seattle that encourages residents to spend money at local, Black-owned small businesses. Statistics show that 7.9% of Seatlle’s population is Black, with less than 1% of their businesses Black-owned. Five times as many of these businesses are closing down compared to white-owned companies. This is why Black Black Friday was created, empowering Seattle’s Black-owned businesses by bringing the entire community on board. Black Black Friday Black Black Friday is organized by Intentionalist – a company that helps people support local, diverse small businesses. Intentionalist
Nigerian venture capital firm Aduna Capital has announced the launch of a $20 million fund to invest in Northern Nigeria startups and Africa. Aduna Capital Aduna Capital is a registered investment advisor startup with a new wealth management advisor experience. The firm provides investment management services where clients can utilize discretion in managing their accounts. This includes advice with various asset classes, including equity, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, fixed-income instruments, and options. Specifically, the client grants the firm full power to direct, manage, and change the investment and reinvestment of
A new Black-led professional technology training program is coming to Charlotte as a boot camp in February 2024. Boot camps serve as an alternate pathway into tech careers, and focuses can range from software development and designing user experience to coding and cybersecurity. According to an analysis shared by the NAACP, less than 6% of participants in technology-focused boot camps are Black. Dark Mode is a company aiming to connect and train diverse talent in the tech industry. Lusenii Kromah, a Charlotte native, founded it. The UX Bootcamp They have announced their
Banks are now considering using AI for their annual review processes, according to Workday Inc., which may cause issues for Black and minority workers. Workday Inc. has rolled out new products that rely on AI to write job descriptions or aid managers in writing up annual reviews of workers’ performance. Co-Chief Executive Officer of Workday Carl Eschenbach told Bloomberg that banks have expressed interest in those products. Less Time And More Productivity It’s all part of their efforts to streamline operations and cut costs, he said, announcing the offering will
As part of the Signature Series, the Kinfolk Foundation is placing four new Augmented Reality (AR) monuments throughout New York to celebrate Black culture and identity throughout the city. AR technology creates interactive, immersive, experimental experiences where our real, physical world is digitally augmented. The Kinfolk Foundation Kinfolk Foundation is a non-profit digital and educational platform that uses art and emerging technologies such as AR to re-center the stories and lives of African-American figures. This aims to highlight the contributions and success of communities of color, uprooting systems and reimagining
Black women in teams with a more significant number of white peers may have worse job outcomes, a new study has found. Elizabeth Linos, the Emma Bloomberg Associate Professor for Public Policy and Management, along with colleagues Sanaz Mobasseri from Boston University and Nina Roussille from MIT, conducted the study. Underrepresentation of People of Color In Leadership According to the study, the underrepresentation of people of color in high-wage jobs, especially leadership positions, still needs to be solved. To better understand and reduce racial inequalities, researchers have often focused on
YouTube has introduced an AI experiment exploring how technology can create deeper connections between artists, creators, and fans, including John Legend, T-Pain, and Papoose. The rise of AI-generated music has sparked excitement and concern within the music industry, from calls for legal action to taking advantage of opportunities to revolutionize music creation. The Dream Track The Dream Track experiment will feature YouTube Shorts and is powered by Google DeepMind’s most advanced music generation model, Lyria. Nine artists, John Legend, Papoose, T-Pain, Alec Benjamin, Charlie Puth, Charli XCX, Demi Lovato, Sia,
Leap Financial, a financial services tech company focused on Hispanic and Latin Americans, has launched Lola AI. The new AI assistant coaches recently arrived immigrants to the US, helping them fully integrate. Leap Financial The 2022 Census estimated more than 46 million immigrants live in the US, comprising about 13.9% of the population. Almost 80% of America’s unicorn companies have an immigrant founder or an immigrant in a crucial leadership role, such as CEO. Leap Financial is a team of engineers, designers, and software developers who create and launch innovative
A Black family designed the web series Gracie’s Corner to provide engaging and educational information to Black children through entertainment and music. In a recent interview with The Dig, they shared why they aren’t worried about the impact of AI and children’s education. Culturally Relevant Digital Education A report found that young Black students had increasingly reported their feelings of unwantedness in their academic spaces and the toll of energy they must exert to feel safe in these spaces. In 2020, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the
As Black Friday approaches, consumers prepare for the year’s busiest shopping day. As Black-owned businesses gain recognition for innovation and creativity, we have compiled a list of Black-owned Amazon alternatives for your holiday shopping this year. HellaBlack HellaBlack began in 2019, founded by computer scientist Love-Leigh Trimiew and her cousins Layla Nielsen and Natalie Robinson. Together, they created a shopping experience connecting brands to a broader audience, becoming a site that encourages Black businesses to tell their stories. HellaBlack is committed to providing a best-in-class e-commerce experience with the most
