Two Black-led Unicorns; A new fund is investing “ridiculously early” in Black women founders; The Essential Guide to Syndicates; Female-backed SPAC.
A weekly newsletter for Black and Brown women highlighting entrepreneurship and venture capital in the tech ecosystem.
Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the last Sunday in January! The month has seemingly flown by and of course, everyone is racing to publish their annual reports on 2020 tech trends, startsups, venture funding and ecosystems. There are lots of long reads in the insight section below as well as our previous two newsletters.
Goodbye January! A warm welcome to my favorite month which includes 28 days of Black History, Valentine’s Day, my Birthday, and our annual family ski week!
Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Actor Robert Downey Jr. raised a rolling fund to back climate tech startups. The SEC said is reviewing the recent trading volatility that has led to a dramatic rise in shares of GameStop and AMC Entertainment. Meanwhile, Robinhood has reportedly raised another $1 billion from existing investors. General Motors will offer all-electric vehicles by 2035. The Honest Company, co-founded by actress Jessica Alba, is preparing to go public.
INSIGHTS
Women in Venture State of the Union
-Hana Yang / First Republic Bank
3 Things I Wish I Knew About VCs as a Founder
-Founder Musings
European Venture Report 2020
-PitchBook
Announcing FirstCheck: Women are under-represented in African tech. We’re on a mission to fix that
-Eloho Omame and Odunayo Eweniyi / First Check Africa
Baobab Developments: 2020 Africa Venture Capital and Start-up Investment Report
-Baobab Insights
The 2020 State of Remote Work
-Buffer
The Essential Guide to Syndicates
-Paige Finn Doherty / WorkOS
OPPORTUNITIES, FUNDING & COMPETITIONS
Black History Month: "Bet on Black" Nomination Form. Nominate yourself, a fellow Black founder/entrepreneur, or an organization that has demonstrated they "Bet on Black" via their actions and investments. #BetOnBlack2021.
Envision, a 12-week virtual student-led, student-built accelerator for undiscovered and underrepresented talent in the startup industry. Priority deadline February 3, 2021. Applications close February 10, 2021.
MedTech Color Pitch Competition. Pitch Competition benefiting Black and LatinX Founders with a special prize of $100k! Pitch your digital health, medical device or diagnostics innovation to a team of industry leaders. Apply by February 5, 2021.
Republic’s Venture Fellow & Associate Program (Spring 2021). Deadline February 7, 2021.
Project Innovation is a competitive grant challenge that will award nearly $3.5 million to non-profit organizations in 11 NBC and Telemundo markets. Apply by February 12, 2021.
The Founder Institute VC Lab (3rd Cohort)- The VC Lab is a virtual program that helps new managers to launch accelerators, pre-seed, seed or Series A venture capital firms globally. Deadline February 15, 2021.
UPCOMING (VIRTUAL) EVENTS
Becoming an Early Stage Investor: What You Need to Know, hosted by Portfolia, February 2, 2021.
Resiliency, Drive and Commitment: Why Survivors Make the Best Entrepreneurs By Techstars, February 2, 2021.
Advancing Women of Color in Tech, hosted by Social Innovation Summit in partnership with Comcast NBCUniversal. February 3, 2021.
2021 Ascend HBCU Esports Conference and Career Expo, February 5, 2021.
27th Venture Capital Private Equity Conference at Harvad Business School, February 6, 2021.
ON OUR RADAR
Microsoft turned its sustainability report into a Minecraft map.
How Black Creatives Are Struggling to Be Heard in France’s Entertainment Industry.
Tennis Champ Naomi Osaka Becomes Part Owner of Women’s Pro Soccer Team.
These barilla X spotify playlists tell you how long you should cook your pasta.
Female-backed SPAC, Powered Brands, aims to create new beauty conglomerate after public listing.
PEOPLE / ANNOUNCEMENTS
Tope Awotona, founder of Atlanta-based Calendly raised $350M, hitting a $3 billion valuation.
CityBlock, Co-Founded by Dr. Toyin Ajayi, Raises $160M in Funding Passing $1B Valuation.
Campbell Soup Company appoints Grant Hill to its Board of Directors.
Rosalind “Roz” Brewer is the new CEO of Walgreens. She will be the only Black woman leading a Fortune 500 company.
Oz Alashe MBE, CEO and founder of UK-based cybersecurity startup CybSafe, a “behavioral security” platform, has raised $7.9 million in a Series A.
Bank of America announced investments in 40 private funds focused on Minority Entrepreneurs for approximately $150 Million.
Slauson & Co. launches inaugural VC Fund for untapped, innovative founders.
A heartfelt thank you for reading and see you next week!
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