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Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. It’s easy to assume that just because you can use AI for something that you should use AI for everything. People are already using it to create websites, images, and videos. These uses of AI do not carry a lot of penalties if something is wrong (depending on what you are building). However, an area in which people are increasingly using AI and should be cautious is the legal system — navigating legal issues, creating legal documents, or doing legal research. Ever since the release of ChatGPT over 2 years ago, we have seen people rush to bring AI to the world of professional services. Founders and investors alike have increasingly seen opportunity in leveraging AI to help in-house attorneys become more effective, and the everyday citizen has been looking to use AI instead of paying the cost of employing an attorney. Legal tech companies have made it their mission to reinvent legal professions and...
Chris Goode’s love for his grandmother lives on through his journey as an entrepreneur. The Kansas City, MO, native is the proud founder of the health and wellness brand Ruby Jean’s Juicery, which is making healthier food options more accessible to underserved communities. His personal call to action, and the name of the venture, was inspired by Ruby Jean, his grandmother, who stepped in to help his single mother raise four children. Ruby Jean didn’t speak much, but she showed her affection through cooking soul food, Goode explained in an interview with AFROTECH™. However, Ruby Jean developed various chronic illnesses, including type 2 diabetes, which eventually led to her being rushed to the hospital. She later passed away after her family made the decision to remove her from life support. Goode was 14 years old at the time, and since that day, he has pledged to keep her spirit alive. “The agony in myself and my mom and my siblings and my aunts, it’s something that I would never...
Chris Paul’s plant-based venture is making its way into another major retailer. In 2019, the NBA player, who was in his 15th season at the time, made the decision to adopt a plant-based diet, GQ reports. While the initial switch was performance-driven, he made the change indefinite after noticing a reduction in routine inflammation and body aches, along with improved stats on the court. “It’s been a good lifestyle change for me,” he told the outlet. Paul, who according to Spotrac has reached $400.9 million in career earnings, has also made plant-based living a central part of his business strategy. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, he invested in Black-owned plant-based brand Misha’s, which is also backed by Jay-Z. In 2021, Paul also struck a deal with digital delivery service GoPuff to expand its “Better For You” product category in the interest of making plant-based products more accessible. A year later, this led to Good Eat’n being introduced with offerings such as chips,...
Jackie And Denis Asamoah are conquering the world of business hand in hand. Inception The married couple are the co-founders of FORVR Mood, a shared passion project that birthed a brand. Their company launched with distinctive candles and later expanded into a fragrance collection that includes I Am Her, You Remind Me, Hard To Get, and NDA, all intentional priced at $79. View this post on Instagram A post shared by FORVR MOOD (@forvrmood) For Jackie, it was a full-circle moment to enter an industry she believes has long been gatekept from Black founders and Black creators, she shared in an interview on the “Black Tech Green Money” podcast. She remembered the first beauty product she could afford was perfume — a purchase that not only helped her bond with her mother but also proved useful in managing the hyperhidrosis (a condition that causes excessive sweating unrelated to heat or exercise) she developed at age 10. “I tie it back to bonding with my mom and also attributing it to the...
South African brewer Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela wants to see more diversity within the beer industry. Nxusani-Mawela is the founder of Tolokazi Premium Beer & Cider, which offers a variety of beers and ciders that honor the legacy of African female brewers and is inspired by the Tolo Kingdom’s history of brewing, according to information shared on her LinkedIn. She began brewing back in 2007 after obtaining a microbiology degree from the University of Witwatersrand and the University of Pretoria, mentions AP News. She also found that she was able to put her science background to good use with brewing. “I sort of fell in love with the combination of the business side with the science, with the craftsmanship and the artistic element of brewing,” she told AP News. This led Nxusani-Mawela to receive further education at the Institute of Brewing and Distilling between 2006 and 2014. By 2019, she positioned herself as a founder within the brewing industry and also owns a brewery that sits in...
Anthony Anderson is succeeding in business alongside fellow comedian and “Barbershop” castmate Cedric the Entertainer. AC Barbeque The pair fulfilled a lifelong dream of becoming owners of a lifestyle barbecue brand named AC Barbeque in 2022, as previously reported by AFROTECH™. According to the company’s website, the brand seeks to uphold pillars of Black excellence and family tradition while helping consumers improve their grilling skills through tools, flavor and community. Speaking on the transition from acting to entrepreneurship, Anderson emphasized that the key to successfully navigating the food industry is surrounding oneself with business-minded individuals who understand how to identify opportunities for success. This was during an interview with AFROTECH™ while at the Essence Festival of Culture — presented by Coca-Cola — in the New Orleans Caesars Superdome. “To know what you don’t know and to prepare for that and to surround yourself with people who are much smarter...
This Black-owned restaurant received a stamp of approval from Jay-Z and Beyoncé! Taste Kitchen + Bar Downtown Houston’s Taste Kitchen + Bar is a beloved Southern comfort and brunch restaurant owned by University of Houston alum Chef Don Bowie. Its current location is situated in downtown at 420 Main St. and opened in 2022. Customers can line up as early as 8 a.m. for brunch items that include peach cobbler waffles, steak and eggs, and elevated grits. Also featured on its menu is smothered chicken, greens, candied yams, jerk lamb chops paired with smoked gouda mac and cheese, cajun or smothered fries, and also various cocktails desserts. “At Taste, we don’t just serve food—we serve soul,” Bowie told Houston Style Magazine. “Each dish tells a story rooted in tradition, culture, and celebration.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Taste Kitchen + Bar (@tastekitchenbar) Taste Kitchen + Bar has seen an influx of customers over the years, but over the weekend, Bowie received...
Westbrook Inc., the entertainment studio founded by Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, Miguel Melendez, and Ko Yada, is entering the anime world — and not quietly. According to a report from Variety, the company has announced a partnership with the newly formed Studio Azuki, signaling a global push that connects Hollywood storytelling with next-generation anime development. The collaboration pairs Westbrook with a new kind of anime studio, one rooted in Japanese tradition, driven by fan participation, and powered by digital culture. “…Our mission has always been to tell stories that connect, inspire, and transcend borders,” Yada, CEO of Westbrook, said via Variety. “…[Studio Azuki’s] creative vision and cultural insight align seamlessly with our global strategy.” Studio Azuki is a joint venture formed by digital-native brand Azuki, manga publisher Comisma Inc., and animation house Xenotoon Inc. Each brings something different to the table. Azuki, born from an NFT project, has already...
A trip to Italy led this couple on a journey to making moves in the wine space. Married couple Carissa and Kenneth Stephens shared a bottle of wine in 2014 that changed their trajectory forever. According to their Pur Noire website, the founders were surprised when they learned that the bottle was from a minority-owned wine brand, and from there they were inspired to widen their palates. This led to a trip to Todi, a town in Umbria, Italy, notes Travel Noire. The pair indulged in various wines such as Barolo and Chianti Classico and also solidified they no longer wanted to solely be consumers in the industry. “While in Italy, we fell in love with wine. We fell in love with the communal aspect of it, and when we got back to the States we really wanted to dive in and explore that,” Carissa told Houston Life. Pur Noire In 2018, the Houston couple decided to enter into business together and form their winery and tasting room, Pur Noire. An official launch had been set for 2020, but like...
This self-taught programmer has secured funding for his newly established startup. According to TechCrunch, Bereket Engida had an idea while living in Ethiopia to create a startup that would resolve issues he experienced around authentication. As a programmer, he created a platform that helped developers observe user behavior on their websites while he was working at remote software jobs. This took him down a new rabbit hole after he noticed frequent issues around authentication. He also did not have great faith in some of the tools that already existed to handle the process, which prompted him to take matters into his own hands. “I remember needing an organization feature. It’s a very common use case for most SaaS applications, but it wasn’t available from these providers,” Engida told TechCrunch. “So I had to build it from scratch. It took me about two weeks, and I remember thinking, ‘This is crazy; there has to be a better way to solve this.’” Better Auth This idea eventually...
Tyra Banks is dedicating her latest business move to her mother. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the supermodel is the proud founder of the ice cream shop Smize & Dream, which had planted its seeds in Dubai and Washington, DC. The venture is very dear to the mother and daughter. Carolyn London, Banks’ mother, sacrificed in her earlier years to provide for both her children after a divorce, Today reports. Grabbing ice cream weekly would be a way to convene and reflect on a more hopeful future. “Years ago, when I was working so hard as a single mom, I worked more than one job,” London said in an Instagram post. “I worked two jobs. I worked three jobs. I did whatever I could. And the way we would celebrate each week that I got through is I would take her for ice cream in Hollywood. We live near Hollywood, and we would go for ice cream, and we would sit in the car and talk about what we wanted out of life, and where we wanted to go and how we wanted to live and her dreams, and try to...
These founders are leaning into AI to help patients combat their medical bills. Avelis Health Founded in February 2025 by Angel Onuoha (CEO) and Ahmad Shehu (chief technology officer), Avelis Health employs AI agents to find errors, audit, and negotiate medical bills, which can help lead to direct savings as well as prevent rising premiums and less favorable coverage. Onuoha shares that its inception derived from an injury that left him with piling medical debt. “I’ve dealt with a chronic knee injury for the past decade and had multiple surgeries on my right knee. What inspired me to start Avelis was having to fight down over $250K of inflated hospital bills as a result of these procedures,” he mentioned in an email to AFROTECH™. “If I was struggling with this system, I knew millions of other Americans were facing the same problem without the resources to fight back. The medical billing system is broken, 100 million Americans have medical debt, and 50-80% of bills have errors in...
We are shedding a light on a group of Black pioneers making significant strides. AFROTECH™ Future 50 Launched in 2022, the AFROTECH™ Future 50 is a prestigious list that amplifies 50 innovators, visionaries, founders, venture capitalists, technologists, and changemakers annually. Dynamic Investors – venture capitalists empowering underserved founders in tech. Future Makers – recognizes professionals for groundbreaking innovation and historical firsts in technology. Visionary Founders – acknowledges the accomplishments of founders who showcase outstanding company growth and a strong dedication toward promoting diversity and inclusion. Changemakers – honors individuals for significant social impact in the tech industry. Corporate Catalysts – professionals who have a track record of championing diversity. Legacy Leaders View this post on Instagram A post shared by AFROTECH (@afro.tech) Exemplifying the aforementioned categories are our Legacy leaders who have upheld these standards of...
Dwyane Wade has widened his footprint in the sneaker space. Way of Wade In 2012, the three-time NBA champion launched the Way of Wade brand, alongside Li-Ning, a Chinese athletic apparel and footwear brand founded in 1990 by Olympic champion gymnast Li Ning, its website notes. Within a year of forming the partnership, six signature shoes launched, and now the Way of Wade brand is in its 10th iteration. View this post on Instagram A post shared by WAY OF WADE by Dwyane Wade (@wayofwade) Expanding Globally Wade plans to scale Way of Wade through global sneaker platform KICKS CREW after becoming its latest investor, according to Sports Illustrated. This will unlock increased support in product development, marketing, and international distribution. Wade will still retain creative and operational control of his brand. “KICKS CREW is redefining what it means to empower athletes. This isn’t just about selling sneakers—it’s about ownership, control, and building something that lasts,” Wade...
In East Oakland, CA, a powerful coalition of Black-led organizations has secured $100 million to fund Rise East, a decade-long effort to transform 40 blocks into a model for what real community-led development can look like, Shoppe Black reports. According to the outlet, after decades of disinvestment and promises not met, the project marks one of the most significant grassroots investments in Oakland’s history, aimed at reversing long-standing patterns of displacement and economic exclusion. A Vision Rooted In Community At the center of Rise East is the 40×40 Council, a group of Black-led nonprofits working together to create long-term stability by focusing on three key areas: education, public safety, and housing. The 40-block area, according to Shoppe Black, spans from Interstate 580 to the San Francisco Bay and from Seminary Avenue to the San Leandro border. It’s home to Oakland’s largest concentration of Black residents, a community that has long endured the ongoing effects of...
