Financial giant Wells Fargo recently announced that it would be investing $355,000 in a new diversity program, The Inclusivity Project. The Inclusivity Project The Inclusivity Project was first launched in 2021 and has since been run by the Northern California Small Business Development Centers (NorCal SBDC). Initially designed to support Black and African American businesses seriously impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the project has since become a community open to all business types and stages. The project offers free advice, mentoring, workshops, and networking, as well as access to exclusive
Invesco QQQ’s startup pitch competition is back; this time, it’s even bigger than before. The competition has returned for its second year in partnership with MaC Venture Capital and Concrete Rose Capital. Invesco’s QQQ Legacy Startup Pitch Competition Invesco QQQ, an exchange-traded investment firm based near Chicago, first launched the Legacy Classic startup pitch competition last year. Initially, the competition was only open to Black founders from HBCUs. However, according to AfroTech, the 2023 competition is open to all Black-founded seed-stage companies with less than $3 million. Since the news was announced,
In a decisive move to fight against the recent overturning of Roe V. Wade, more than one hundred VC firms have come together to create VCs for Repro, a coalition of venture capital firms united in support of abortion rights. Roe v. Wade’s Impact on Black women Since the Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe. V Wade law, abortion is no longer a federal right in the US. As a result, across more than half the US, many women must carry their pregnancies to term. As Black women in the
Tech platform Mission 41K has partnered with former NFL player Emil Ekiyor to bridge the racial gap within tech. What Is Launch Mission 41K? Mission 41K is a movement designed to address the difficulty the tech industry faces today with finding and retaining tech talent. By prioritizing a skills-based hiring process, more people will be able to break into the sector through inclusive pathways. The organization aims to provide a variety of entry points into the industry so people with ongoing apprenticeships and internships can still excel in a competitive
The training development company, CyberVista, has announced its new partnership with the not-for-profit organization BlackGirlsHack (BGH Foundation). What is BlackGirlsHack? The BGH Foundation, founded by Tennisha Martin, aims to provide Black women and girls with the resources, mentorship, and resources needed to succeed within the cyber sector. The non-profit organization’s mission is to empower Black women to break into an industry that lacks diverse representation by supplying them with the essential training resources they need. BlackGirlsHack does not only advocate for diversity within the cyber security space, but they also use
Chicago entrepreneur Arthur Burton is working to increase access to the clean energy sector by providing job training to youth in underrepresented communities. Who is Arthur Burton? After establishing his company in 2019, Arthur Burton has been committed to providing opportunities for members of disinvested communities by making training for green jobs more accessible. Before launching his clean energy initiative, Burton focused on expanding his experience within the sustainability sector. After receiving his Bachelor of Science degree in telecommunications, the entrepreneur worked at AT&T for 18 years as a technical
Despite making moves in the investment world, Kevin Hart has made it clear that he has not taken his eye off entertainment. After investing $500,000 in Black Sands Entertainment earlier this year, Kevin Hart’s Hartbeat Productions has announced it is working with the Black-owned comic house to adapt its “Black Sands” comic series into an animated film and television series. The move has been described as “one of the most significant moments in Black entertainment history” and will see Hartbeat provide Black Sands Entertainment with strategic advisory services as part
In June, Solo Ceesay, a 27-year-old first-generation immigrant, spearheaded a $26 million raise for Calaxy, an open social marketplace he co-founded with NBA star Spencer Dinwiddie. At the time, only 8% of VC funding had gone to Black startups. In this thought piece, Ceesay breaks down why funding for Black founders continues to fall short, despite efforts to turn things around. In Q3 2022, Black entrepreneurs raised $187 million in venture funding, equating to merely 0.12% of the $150.9 billion that venture capitalists deployed in totality. This figure is severely
Black founders Kim Knight and Shanelle McKenzie are the women behind the wellness platform, The Villij, which provides Black women with a safe space for healing and wellness. Why is it important to have wellness spaces for Black people? The wellness industry has struggled to welcome Black and brown women. Instead, for many years, the wellness industry has reconstructed a narrative that has seen self-care become synonymous with wealth and class. Despite holistic practices being hugely beneficial for the Black community, especially when it comes to healing from racial trauma,
Black entrepreneur Luke Cooper is redefining the meaning of success. In a recent interview, the Baltimore entrepreneur opened up about his rollercoaster journey into the tech industry, which unexpectedly saw him generate tremendous success. Who is Luke Cooper? Luke Cooper, a partner at Preface Ventures and founder of Latimer, describes himself as an ‘intentional entrepreneur.’ Cooper has a proven track record of growing sales and closing multiple $50 million exists while supporting women and BIPOC founders. The Baltimore entrepreneur is also a father of two with a deep passion for making the world a
