Black founder-turned-investor Monique Woodard has announced the launch of Cake Ventures‘ new $17 million fund to help pre-seed and seed investments. Cake Ventures’ first fund After closing her first fund in March 2021, Woodard shifted her focus to create a fund that would help underrepresented founders often overlooked by Silicon Valley. The $17 million fund will focus on pre-seed and seed investments. Woodard’s focus is to help businesses drive demographic change within three main areas: aging and longevity-minded population, increased earning power of women in society, and the shift to
Who said braids weren’t professional? Fionnghuala “Fig” O’Reilly is committed to redefining what is deemed “acceptable” in the workplace. The pioneering engineer sparked the attention of hundreds of Twitter users after a photo of herself rocking feed-in braids in the lab went viral. After becoming the first Black woman to represent Ireland in the Miss Universe competition and becoming the only Black woman in her class to graduate with a systems engineering, O’Reilly is used to beating the odds. The engineer, who has spent her whole life navigating her dual
Governor Kathy Hochul has announced a $30 million pre-seed and seed matching fund program to help early-stage startup companies. The funding for the program will come from the State Small Business Credit Initiative to provide extra support to small businesses owned by historically marginalized individuals, including Black and brown entrepreneurs and traditionally disadvantaged individuals. The initiative, part of New York’s $500 million federal investment, aims to help small businesses recover from the pandemic and rebuild local economies. As a part of the program, Governor Hochul will offer early-stage startup companies
This article by Camille Hall was originally published on Medium. A collection of voices from fellow black female engineers and my own experiences prompted me to write this, it is with my hope that it is well received. This article is intended to be presented as an informational and practical offering of guidance for those who are working alongside a black female engineer within a male-dominated industry. Written with love by a black female software engineer. In some spaces being a woman is enough of a hurdle to combat. Insert
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is the biggest federal climate deal in history and is great news for Black-owned carbon transformation startup Twelve. According to reports, the IRA contains $500 billion in funding to boost clean energy, reduce healthcare costs, and increase tax revenues. The Act follows negotiations on President Biden’s Build Back Better Act and is welcome news for climate startups like Twelve. “The Inflation Reduction Act, that’s been really amazing. We’re so excited about that,” said Twelve co-founder Ethosa Cave in an interview. “There’s so many provisions in there:
Hack. Diversity’s mission is to shake up the industry, and after receiving a $500,000 grant from The Barr Foundation, they are on the road to achieving this goal. The Barr Foundation’s program expansion According to reports, non-profit organization Hack. Diversity was awarded a two-year $500,000 grant from the Barr Foundation. The grant is a part of the organization’s initiative to advance racial wealth equity and its partnership with Hack. Diversity is a testament to that. The grant will allow Hack. Diversity to expand their program impact and remove the hurdles
Black Girls In Tech (BGIT) has partnered with Motorway, the UK’s fastest-growing used car marketplace, to promote tech diversity and inclusivity. BGIT is a community for Black women to share their experiences and resources for thriving in the white, male-dominated tech industry. Co-founders Karen Emelu and Valerie Oyiki previously told POCIT that BGIT began as a group chat. Today, BGIT is an international organization providing a community, resources, and opportunities to Black women in tech. Bootcamp to Hiring Pipeline Motorway will be sponsoring BGIT’s first cohort of their free frontend development bootcamp. The bootcamp will run from
What a year! Many of you who have been following our tech coverage closely have embarked on a journey that has been both stimulating and inspiring. Over the past year, we’ve ventured into a world of immersive technology that has seen a popular AI platform takeover of the internet and new life formed on the metaverse. It is hard to predict what 2023 has in store for the world of technology, but it is bound to be a rollercoaster – so get strapped in! To commemorate the end of this
If you don’t know Nelly Cheboi yet, now is the time to start doing your research. Nelly Cheboi, the founder of Kenyan recycling company, TechLit Africa, has been named CNN’s Hero Of The Year for her revolutionary work across Africa. Who is Nelly Cheboi? Nelly Cheboi, who grew up in a poor rural village in Kenya, redistributes recycled technology to rebuild computer labs in African schools. At a very young age, Cheboi was exposed to the struggles of poverty. Yet, despite having no computer access, Cheboi landed a scholarship to study computer
Sheryl E. Ponds is working to ensure Black people are not left behind as the world moves towards electric vehicles. She is the entrepreneur behind Black-owned startup Dai Technologies Corp, which designs and builds electric vehicle charging stations. Electric Vehicle Charging Deserts DaiTechCorp describes itself as an ‘EV Adoption expert’ working to bring electric vehicles into the Black community. After successfully building electric vehicle charging stations, Ponds realized that many of her clientele were affluent and white, so she decided to rebuild her business model to reach the Black community. According to reports, about 2%
