Microsoft has appointed Sarah Bond as the president of Xbox. According to Black Girl Gamers, Bond is the first Black woman to hold such a role at a major multinational gaming company. Meet Sarah Bond Bond has been with Microsoft for almost seven years. In 2017, she joined the company as a Corporate Vice President of Gaming Partnerships and Business Development. While in this role, she led business development, partner management, and M&A for the Xbox Division while also being the executive sponsor of Blacks @ Microsoft Employee Resource Group.
Wicked Saints, a Black woman-led video game studio, has secured $3.5 million in seed funding. The funding round, co-led by Riot Games and Oregon Venture Fund, brings the studio’s total funding to $4.6 million Jessica Murrey, Wicked Saints’ founder and CEO, also joins the small group of Black women founders who have raised over $1 million. Learning Real-World Skills Through Gaming World Reborn is Gen Z’s take on Pokémon Go, offering a unique blend of storytelling, real-world activism, and location-based play. The studio’s flagship game, “World Reborn,” merges the digital
Black 10-year-old Ava Simmons has partnered with retailers across the US and Canada to launch her Team Genius Squad STEM toy line. Team Genius Squad Team Genius Squad is a movement and an aspiring brand created by 10-year-old Ava, also known as the STEM Princess. Their mission is to promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) awareness, encouraging individuals to believe in themselves, to identify their uniqueness, and to pursue their goals. They design STEM-inspired products such as Experiment Lab Kits, Jewelry, Lip Gloss, Puzzles and Apparel whilst developing fun
Left Fielder Media is the Black-owned media tech studio producing innovative & immersive stories at the intersection of film, blockchain, gaming, fashion, and future tech. We spoke with the creators behind the visionary company that recently signed a deal with Neon, the web3 game studio producing the highly anticipated shooter game Shrapnel. From childhood friends to co-founders Atlanta-based creators Dom Cole and Stephen Philms formed the media tech startup in 2020 to change how Black people view gaming and space for years to come. “Me and Stephen have known each other for a long time.
21-year-old Yemi Agesin is one of the few students from across the globe who was awarded Apple’s most prestigious award – the 2023 Swift Student Challenge. His baseball game explores the intricate and high-level strategies that go into a batter v. pitcher matchup, incorporating SpriteKit and SwiftUI following his lifelong passion for baseball. His Journey to the Game As a computer science student at Kennesaw State University, he had been coding for many years, beginning in middle school. “During our lunch break in middle school, a few others invited me to come with
This article was first published by Ruben D Galvan on Medium. Creating Socavon was a deeply meaningful experience for me. It allowed me to create something truly unique while incorporating my roots and passion for storytelling. Play Socavon here <<<<<<<< Socavon A few months back, I listened to the song VOLVIÓ A LATIR — Milena Warthon x Chila Jatun, and a world of opportunity opened up. Milena Warthon and Chila Jatun have created a masterpiece by modernizing iconic sounds from the Andes. The song hits a special chord with me because I grew
Actor Jesse Williams and conceptual artist Glenn Kaino have teamed up to create Homeschooled, a new trivia app on Black culture and history. The app, which aims to make learning fun again, features trivia questions in over 50 categories and can be played alone or with friends and family. Trivia questions cover topics like pop culture, history, science, music, geography, and art, with category names like “Growing Up Black,” “Kicks” and “Street Fashion.” There is even a Grey’s Anatomy section with science-related questions, which is a nod to Williams’ role
South African startup Carry1st has raised $27 million in latest funding round to tap into the gaming industry in Africa. Carry1st’s funding round The funding round, led by gaming-focused VC firm BITKRFT Ventures, also included VC Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), TTV Capital, Lateral Capital, Alumni Ventures, and Kepple Ventures. The investment will help Carry1st create a steady financial infrastructure to prepare for Africa’s fast-paced gaming space. “We’re delighted to partner with BITKRAFT, one of the world’s top gaming VC firms, alongside a16z and other existing investors as we continue on our
To celebrate Computer Science Education week, Girls Who Code have launched a new video game, Girls Who Code Girls, tailored to turning users into creators by helping them code their characters. According to recent stats, 77% of video game developers are men meaning most female and non-binary characters are designed by men, which is why women are misrepresented. Black Girls Who Code hopes to change that with their new gaming experience. Girls Who Code, founded by Reshma Saujani, is a non-profit organization committed to disrupting the imbalance in gaming by challenging the misogynistic culture that
Kickstarting the festive season, the latest interactive Google Doodle celebrates the life and accomplishments of self-taught engineer Gerald ‘Jerry’ Lawson, also known as ‘one of the fathers of modern gaming.’ Lawson, who passed away at 70, was one of the first prominent African American figures in the game industry. As chief hardware engineer for Fairchild Semiconductor, Lawson steered the development of the first home video gaming system with interchangeable game cartridges. Encouraged to experiment Lawson was born in Brooklyn in 1940. Encouraged by his parents to experiment, Lawson grew up
