More new Black-owned companies were formed in 2020 than at any time in the last 25 years. However, we do know the significant challenges Black and Brown founders face trying to gain much-needed venture capital and investment for their businesses. Despite a bleak outlook, some minority entrepreneurs have found ways to attract investment during a chaotic pandemic year. In fact, Black founders are raising record amounts of venture capital funds in 2021. How are founders finding investment? Lockdowns theoretically made investors easier to reach. Many founders are now more accessible virtually through Zoom and
Techish is back with a brand new episode! Abadesi and Michael discuss Instagram’s new feature will let online shops identify as Black-owned to better attract users wanting to show support. (28:00) They also break down: Bezos steps down and Amazon strives to be Earth’s best employer (0:20) Is it the end of an era for innovation for Big Tech companies? (5:00) Sha’Carri Richardson’s ban from the Tokoyo Olympics, cannabis, and the politics of sport (8:55) The pros and cons of Robinhood going public (16:48) The online scam taking money from your bank transfers (23:40)
This 27 year old Zimbabwean Teacher Scaled a Tutoring Business Just Using WhatsApp – Techish Podcast
Techish is back with a brand new episode! Abadesi and Michael discuss the story of Maxwell Chimedza who used his cellphone and WhatsApp to start a tutoring academy for his sudents in Zimbabwe during the pandemic. (16:50) They also break down: Black TikTokers on strike (0:50) White privilege, raising capital, and starting companies in Africa (8:50) Facebook hits a trillion and tech monopolies (21:50) Charles D. King talks privilege in film and challenging conventional narratives (29:08) Sponsors Get your ticket for Inbound 2021! Speakers include Oprah Winfrey, Tristan Walker and more! Register for
As a Latina founder of a social impact company, raising VC money hasn’t exactly been easy. Especially in Chicago, where I’m based, the VC community, while close-knit and easily accessible, is small, homogenous, and focused on later-stage investments. On the startup side, of the 65 Chicago-based startups backed by Chicago-based venture capital funds, only 16 (about 25%) have a non-white founder, and only 15 (or 23%) have a female founder to Chicago Blend. From firsthand experience, the lack of access to early-stage capital compared to the coasts has an oversized impact on underrepresented
Two New York-based rap legends show up and show out in the venture capitalism space, making millions outside of music. Both hailing from New York from humble beginnings, the two legends weren’t particularly close while reaching mainstream success in the ’90s. It started with Dead Presidents II and ended in a tour. Their rap beef ignited the hip-hop community in New York City, around the world, and spawned several diss tracks that got pretty intense. They finally declared an end to this feud on stage with the ‘I Declare War”
The Cannabis industry is booming but rife with inequities and discrimination. American marijuana businesses are projected to have between $106 billion and $130 billion by 2024 on the US economy. Often referred to as the ‘Green Rush’, hundreds of lucrative weed businesses have popped up all over the US where weed is now legal. The problem? These businesses are predominately white-owned. A 10+ billion dollar industry, and we own less than 1% of it. The big cannabis players, most of them white-owned and backed by lucrative venture capital, don’t face
Techish is back with a brand new episode! Abadesi and Michael discuss how white celebs are getting rich off a new cannabis narrative, yet POC still are still paying the price. (21:25) They also break down: The end of Indie.VC but their legacy carries on (00:10) Brandwatch’s impressive $450M exit! (11:10) Paying for Twitter? Twitter’s new super follow option (16:30) This Episode Is Sponsored By Notion Get your Notion account here. Notion is hiring! Check out their open positions Extras Techish on PatreonAdvertise with TechishPlease rate and review the Techish podcast Subscribe To The Techish Podcast On Apple Podcasts, Spotify, And Other Platforms.
Techish is back with a brand new episode! Abadesi and Michael discuss Donald Glover’s new creative partnership with Amazon to create his own curated content channel, and how this might affect how we stream. (23:41) They also break down: Coinbase and Stripe make $100 billion valuations (00:10) Digital ownership of memes with NFT (aka Non-Fungible Token) (3:54) Loneliness across cultures and the isolating effects of remote working (7:34) Spotify vs Clubhouse (18:21) Vitamin D benefits (29:16) Extras Techish on PatreonAdvertise with TechishPlease rate and review the Techish podcast Subscribe To The Techish Podcast On Apple Podcasts, Spotify, And Other Platforms.
The price of Bitcoin is surging. A new all time high for BTC reaching above $50K this month has everyone talking, bitcoin, crypto and investing. Major institutional investors, celebrity endorsements and payments firms like Mastercard and PayPal are investing in the cryptocurrency. Since the creation of Bitcoin 11 years ago, a growing number of people are turning to a new monetary system, one that is not controlled by any single authority. Cryptocurrency is a decentralized system run by a network of computers. In what some call a financial revolution, the rise in popularity of
Nigeria, often dubbed ‘Africa’s Silicon Valley,’ is making a name for itself. Meet the talented Nigerians on the continent and the diaspora leading tech companies, building multi-million [and even billion] dollar businesses, investing in their community, and taking their talents globally. Tope Awotona | Founder, Calendly Awotona spent his early years as the second youngest in seven in a lower class neighborhood of Lagos, Nigeria. Yet, Awotona is the mastermind and founder behind a rarity – a Black-owned unicorn, the scheduling powerhouse, ‘Calendly.’ In an interview with Fortune, Tope talks