Talent x Opportunity has announced the launch of its third cohort. The initiative, designed to support artistic geniuses with the tools they need to scale and grow, welcomed a new set of founders for this year’s program. The TxO program, founded by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (known as “a16z”), works to help accelerate the growth and impact of upcoming tech companies. They select elite entrepreneurs and prepare them with the ideal tools to build and expand their companies. Here are five founders joining the TxO community in Fall 2022.
Lagos-based utility company, Beacon Power Services, has closed a seed round of $2.7 million. The funding round led by Seedstars African also saw venture capital firms Keeple Africa Ventures, Factor[e], and Ordiun Capital Management participate in the funding round. Beacon Power Services, founded in 2013 by Bimbola Adisa, is a leading provider of data and grid management solutions for Africa’s power sector. The platform, established to address Nigeria’s inadequate electricity supply, aims to enhance energy access for Africa’s cities significantly. Beacon Power’s primary goal is to improve the quality and duration of electricity
Digital investment platform, Stackwell Capital, has raised $3.5 million. The funding round was led by Michael Gordan, president of Fenway Sports Group, Jeremy Sclar, and The Kraft Group. Venture capital firm Shea Ventures, SSC Venture Partners, Shorehaven Wealth Partners, and Theo Epstein, a consultant to Major League Baseball, also participated in the funding round. Stackwell Capital, founded in 2021 by Trevor Rozier-Byrd, is a digital investment platform created to eliminate the racial wealth gap by empowering a new community of Black investors. In addition, the platform works to provide Black
Black Business Month has officially arrived. To kickstart this month, online marketplace, FLOURYSH, has announced its partnership with e-commerce platform, Shopify, to help elevate 1 million Black-owned businesses, providing them with the necessary tools needed to scale and grow. The FLOURYSH x Shopify partnerships aim to address the lack of access to information, a common setback for aspiring entrepreneurs. According to the press release, Black business owners receive a 120-day free trial on the e-commerce platform. “The partnership came to be because of our continued commitment to providing resources and
Black-owned digital marketplace, Clutch, has raised $1.2 million in a pre-seed investment fund. The funding round which Precursor Ventures led also included Capital Factory and HearstLab. Clutch, co-founded in 2020 by Madison Long and Simone May, is a digital marketplace for emerging brands and creators. According to the outlet, Long and May built the platform to provide a space where creators can launch, market, and grow their side hustles. Clutch works to create a world where authentic, engaging work supports a more sustainable, equitable lifestyle. As a people-first platform, creators
American actress Sonequa Martin-Green has teamed up with snack brand Frito-Lay Variety Packs and STEM Next’s Million Girls Moonshot to provide young girls with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics learning opportunities. The partnership, which will come under the Back-to-School Blast Off program, aims to encourage the next generation of women to pursue careers in STEM. Through the initiative, families can enjoy STEM activities created by NASA scientists using everyday household items, such as designing a heat shield or building a moon lander. “Representation matters, and sometimes, all it takes to
California-based VC firm, L’Attitude, has launched its new fund to support early-stage Latino founders. The investment firm raised $100 million from big-name investors, including Bank of America, Trujillo Group, Barclays, Cisco, Royal Bank of Canada, and a “strategic anchor investment” from JPMorgan Chase. According to the outlet, Latino business owners have grown 34% over the last decade. Yet, despite this, 72% of Latino entrepreneurs face funding shortfalls, with a large majority relying on personal savings, and only 1.8% are venture-backed. L’Attitude, founded in 2019 by Kennie Blanco and Sol Trujillo,
“We were made to look like fools,” one creator said. Content creators are calling out TikTok’s rival, Triller, for recruiting Black talent and not committing to paying them on time or sometimes not at all. According to The Washington Post, more than two dozen creators, talent managers, and former company staff have anonymously decided to speak out against the platform. Many recalled their experiences of being forced to cope with uncertain payments, a demanding posting schedule, and vague requirements throughout their partnership with the platform. In 2021, the video-sharing app
POC-led embedded integration platform, Paragon, has raised $13 million in a Series A funding round led by Inspired Capital Partners. The funding round also included investors FundersClub and Garuda Ventures. Paragon, founded in 2019 by Ishmael Samuel and Brandon Foo, provides customers with a seamless, self-service experience that fits within the users’ existing workflow. The program, which is still relatively new in the market, has helped several companies integrate with different SaaS apps in a matter of minutes. The platform’s vision is to build a connecting layer for all software
Black-owned VC firm, Cornerstone has launched its first-ever investment fund to help support entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds. The £20 million ($23.9 million) fund aims to give early-stage tech companies between £250,000 and £1 million, based in the UK and across 40 countries. Cornerstone VC wants to help change the situation, to make the investment world a lot more diverse by backing unrepresented and undervalued founders and innovators. “We believe diversity is key to driving outperformance. Contrary to perceptions around a pipeline problem, that there aren’t enough diverse entrepreneurs to invest
