Mykel B Davis, CEO of Muscle Up Mommy and creator of MUMFEST health and wellness festival, is set to relaunch Muscle Up Mommy online store during Black Breastfeeding Week. The relaunch brings back its sought-after wearable Breast Pump. “Muscle Up Mommy is making a bold statement: access, innovation, and representation in maternal health should not be optional—they’re essential,” Davis said in a press release shared with POCIT. Disparities in breastfeeding Black women in the US face significant disparity in breastfeeding rates, with lower rates of initiation and duration compared to white
Every entrepreneur knows that running a business is not for the fainthearted. You’re often working several hours a day, balancing several tasks, managing your own cash flow, and then there’s the extra burden of being a Black or Brown entrepreneur. 81% of minority founders experience mental health issues, with 60% experiencing anxiety and 20% dealing with depression. It’s an aspect of being a business person that isn’t spoken about widely enough, especially for minorities. This is what drove wellness entrepreneur and founder of BodyCompleteRx, Samia Gore, to launch Foundnwell, a community-driven non-profit
Serena Williams has joined an initiative created by Reckitt to support up to 200 health and hygiene start-ups founded by women and under-represented entrepreneurs. The initiative, called Reckitt Catalyst, is a five-year commitment with up to £10 million ($13.7 million) to provide entrepreneurs with funding, mentorship, and expertise from Reckitt leaders and Serena Williams. Since 2020, the company has helped 60 entrepreneurs across 13 countries, allowing business owners to unlock access to health, clean water, and sanitation for one million people, as stated in a press release. What is Reckitt
Kande Sill, 16, has been awarded the Arkwright Engineering Scholarship, one of the UK’s most prestigious honors for young engineering talent. Her award-winning project, “Enhancing Medical Delivery,” explores how drones can securely transport critical medical supplies, such as vaccines and blood, to underserved communities. Medical drone innovation Sill’s design features an insulated, theft-resistant container and a delivery mechanism designed for safety and precision. “My project focused on the development of a secure medical drone delivery system to transport sensitive items while preventing theft,” she told her school. The Arkwright Scholarship
The NAACP is demanding an immediate shutdown of Colossus, a Memphis-based supercomputer built by Elon Musk’s AI company xAI, citing violations of environmental regulations. NBC News reported that a letter was sent to the Shelby County Health Department and Memphis Light Gas and Water from the civil rights group on Thursday, May 29. In a letter addressed to Dr. Michelle Taylor, director of the Shelby County Health Department, leaders from the NAACP criticized the organization’s “lackadaisical approach to the operation of this dirty data center.” They urged them to “issue
Lagos-based health tech company Platos Health raised $1.4 million in a pre-seed round to scale its AI-driven metabolic health platform, Platos Monitor. The startup allows people to monitor their body fat and other health metrics from their homes, according to TechCrunch. Google led the round for Startups with help from Invest International and a group of angel investors from Google, Tesla, and Unicredit. The company will use the funding to roll out its hardware medical-grade device, Plato’s Body Monitor, in Nigeria. What is Platos Health? Platos Health is a preventive
For the first time in history, the FDA has approved a device that allows people to screen for cervical cancer from home. Teal Health launched the Teal Wand, a prescription device that lets patients self-collect samples and mail them to labs to receive the same testing that they would receive from a professional doctor. In January, it was announced that Serena Ventures, Williams’ VC firm, participated in a $10 million seed funding round for Teal Health. How will the kit work? Once a user requests a kit, a vetting process to confirm eligibility is
Pan-African initiative Investing in Innovation Africa (i3) has announced the launch of its third cohort, which will provide seven founders with $225,000 each in grant funding to transform pharmacy services across the continent. The initiative is sponsored by the Gates Foundation, MSD, Cencora (formerly AmerisourceBergen), Endless Foundation, HELP Logistics (a subsidiary of the Kühne Foundation), Sanofi’s Global Health Unit, and Chemonics. It is a three-year program set to help founders improve patient access to healthcare across Africa, according to a press release shared by POCIT. Which seven startups have been selected? The seven
James Oliver, founder of the co-founder matching app Kabila, has launched the Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund, to support founders’ mental health. Backed by the Social Good Fund, the initiative received a $25,000 seed grant from Techstars Co-Founder Brad Feld. Supporting founders’ mental health Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund will provide free mental therapy for founders in the Kabila community. This includes founders in the Kabila Ventures portfolio, Oliver’s new pre-seed fund. “So many early-stage founders I talk with are having a HARD time right now – making tough decisions
Wicked Saints Studios, a Black woman-led video game studio, has partnered with Discord, e.l.f Beauty, and Starlight Children’s Foundation to launch World Reborn. The first-of-its-kind interactive story game uses behavioral science and positive psychology to boost players’ well-being. With 87% of Gen Z gaming online weekly, World Reborn meets them where they are—turning gameplay into meaningful connection and real-world impact. How does the game work? Users will be given real-world quests called Training Mods, which feature real-life changemakers addressing several social goods, such as supporting women’s sports from e.l.f., empowering teen
