Black Founders Aims to Change the Startup Game
Finally, a way to figure out who the black tech entrepreneurs are. Black Founders will provide a way to “connect black entrepreneurs and technology startup professionals in Silicon Valley and around the world.” The mission is simple: to empower entrepreneurs and provide founders with access to advice, mentorship, and funding. It is the brain child of Chris Bennett, Hadiyah Mujhid, Nnena Ukuku, and Monique Woodard.
While there has been discussion around women in tech, there has not been much focus on racial diversity in tech. There are various conferences and events focused on minorities, but no real rally point for black entrepreneurs. As of this writing, Black Founders is set to launch in 8 days, 17 hours, and 9 minutes.
Initially, there will be events in San Francisco, Oakland, and Palo Alto. From there, they hope to expand beyond “cocktail mixers” into things like Hackathons and Speaker Panels. The goal is to help turn ideas into reality and provide support for the entrepreneurial community. Long term, Black Founders aims to “change the idea of what a tech entrepreneur looks like” and help these startups connect with VC money.
While the current focus is on events, Black Founders plans to look to the community to figure out what is needed to succeed. There are currently no specific plans for an online community or social network and this is one of the areas where Black Founders will rely on feedback from the existing tech community. A strong online presence will be key in connecting with entrepreneurs outside of Silicon Valley.
Follow @BlackFounders on Twitter and follow the countdown at BlackFounders.com for updates. There is also a Meetup group.
Category: Entrepreneur, Featured | Tags: black entrepreneurs, black founders, Diversity, racial diversity, Startups
About the Author Rahsheen has been a certified geek since before it was the thing to do. He started programming and tinkering in the 4th grade. Now, Rahsheen mostly writes on various sites about technology trends in social media and mobile. . He is also a musician, singer, rapper, writer, and producer. @rahsheen - +Rahsheen Porter - coachrah.com
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