Black founder Katara McCarty launched her app, EXHALE, in 2020 after struggling to find an app suited to Black women’s wellbeing. Exhale App EXHALE is the first emotional well-being app designed for Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color (BIWOC). EXHALE was born from the idea that the Black and Brown community is holding its breath, waiting for the next video of police brutality, the next micro-aggression, or the following adverse health impact statistic. “It’s time to exhale – to breathe out all that isn’t serving BIWOC and breathe in healing, energy and
U.S. Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against SpaceX Over Alleged Discrimination In Hiring Practices
The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, for allegedly discriminating against asylees and refugees in hiring. Musk’s SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft. The Lawsuit The lawsuit alleges that from September 2018 to May 2022, SpaceX routinely discouraged asylees and refugees from applying. It also states the company refused to hire or consider them because of their citizenship status, violating the Immigration and Nationality Act. In job postings over several years, the rocket company wrongly claimed that under federal regulations known as
Empowering Motherhood: The Black-Owned App Revolutionizes Pre And Post-Natal Care Through Technology
The Aster app was created to help women keep track of their pregnancy, communicate with a care team on the app and book appointments and remote monitoring. Founder of Aster FiFi Kara created the app after witnessing her family’s distress as her nephew was brought into the world. “After an emergency CAT 1 C-Section delivery, he required over seven minutes of resuscitation before he took his very first breath,” she wrote on LinkedIn. “The fact that both my nephew and sister are now thriving feels like a miracle, yet this narrative is sadly
Mariam Jimoh, the founder of African and Caribbean goods and foods online delivery service Oja has announced the digital supermarket is shutting down. Oja – Digital Supermarket In 2020, British Nigerian Mariam Jimoh launched Oja, which means market in Yoruba, as the UK’s first ethnic digital supermarket focusing on African and Caribbean goods. After struggling to find the Nigerian food she grew up with in her local supermarket chain, Jimoh was motivated to leave her corporate career and work towards a solution. The result was Oja, which promised fast and
After experiencing a close call with a tornado in 2015, Robert Washington founded Shelter Share, a mobile app helping Oklahoma residents find nearby shelters during natural disasters. Shelter Share Oklahoma has had over 800 tornadoes, but Oklahoma City only has 26 shelters per 1500 residents, with no public shelters available. Shelter Share, founded in 2022 by Robert Washington, is a mobile app that helps users locate nearby shelters during natural disasters. Washington experienced a close call with a tornado in 2015. He was in a two-story apartment building, holding his newborn
Founders Factory Africa (FFA) has raised $114 million in funding to scale its model to better serve founders across the African tech ecosystem. Founders Factory Africa Founders Factory Africa, founded in 2018 by Roo Rogers, Alina Truhina and Sam Sturm, is an African early-stage investor supporting founders across the continent. With a portfolio of over 55 ventures across 11 countries in East, West, North and Southern Africa, they combine capital investment with support for entrepreneurs. They invest up to $250,000 in ventures at idea, pre-Seed and Seed stage for ventures
Black-owned venture capital firm, MaC Venture Capital, has hired finance and operations veteran Jennifer Randle as its first Chief Operating Officer (COO). MaC Venture Capital MaC was launched in 2019 by four founding partners: former Washington D.C. mayor Adrian Fenty, former talent agent Charles D. King, VC veteran Marlon Nichols, and investor Michael Planak. The firm had its first $100 million fund in 2021 in seed-stage funding and a second $203 million in 2022. The team uses their skills and knowledge to support the next generation of tech companies, focusing on reshaping the culture
ISACA and Blacks In Technology (BIT) are collaborating to prepare underserved communities in Atlanta for emerging tech careers, through ISACA’s Digital Trust-Workforce Inclusion Program (DT-WIP) and One In Tech Foundation. ISACA And Blacks In Technology ISACA is a global professional association and learning organization of nearly 170,000 professionals in 188 countries. Their members work in digital trust fields such as information security, governance, assurance, risk, privacy and quality. Through its foundation, One In Tech, ISACA supports IT education and career pathways for underresourced and underrepresented populations. “Enterprises across all industries need qualified professionals
Endeavor Miami is partnering with venture capital firm DeepWork Capital to funnel more capital into underrepresented early-stage founders. Endeavor Miami and DeepWork Capital Endeavor Miami was founded in 2013, with the support of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, as the first U.S. affiliate of Endeavor, an organization supporting entrepreneurs worldwide. According to Biz Journals, Miami’s Endeavor entrepreneurs generated over $700 million in revenues and employed over 5,000 individuals in 2021. Now the organization has partnered with DeepWork Capital, an Orlando-based early-stage venture capital firm that primarily invests in tech and
This article was first published by Cheryl Lyn here. Many African American small business owners face challenges with funding due to post-pandemic hardship, inflation, and fierce competition. Yet black-owned businesses have been integral to the U.S. economy in the past and present. To help you out, we’ve rounded up a list of 20 places where you can seek grants and funding for your business in 2023. Backstage Capital What’s cool about Backstage Capital is that they intentionally back underrepresented founders, particularly those of color, female genders, and LGBTQ orientations. Founded in 2015, this private firm
