Showing 324 results for:
investing
Popular topics
All results
The Gathering Spot has secured strategic funding. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, The Gathering Spot, co-founded by Ryan Wilson and TK Petersen, is a private membership club that has made its way to major cities, including Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Detroit, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and Houston. The Gathering Spot, which prides itself on creating an inviting and collaborative atmosphere, recently rolled out The Retreat, a 60,000-square-foot space that includes a pool, private dining rooms, and cabanas, all while overlooking Atlanta’s skyline. “I wanted our community to have access to the best spaces around,” Wilson said on “The Black Tech Green Money” podcast. “This is world class space that we we can go head-to-head with any favorite rooftop that you have around. It really is that sort of product. But the second thing is that I’ve always known that people connect or want to connect for different reasons.” He added, “If there’s a meaningful community conversation...
Former Division I athlete Nyla Pollard is now innovating in the sports world as a founder. Ballin AI In 2023, Pollard, along with a team of coaches, evaluators, and seasoned AI engineers, launched Ballin AI, a sports technology company that helps high school and college athletes assess their performance and serves as a recruiting resource for coaches, its website mentions. Through the platform, athletes can gain insight into how they are playing as well as how college coaches view their game. Players upload their film, which is then analyzed by a nationally recognized evaluator and scored across key criteria such as defense, shooting, rebounding, scoring, transition, ball handling, and finishing. This platform was a three-year effort led by Ballin AI Chief Development Officer Tenishia Benson, Pollard mentioned on LinkedIn. “Our report gives you an in-depth look at your skills, shooting, defense, and IQ to show you where you’re thriving, but also where you need to improve,” Pollard...
Building on the work she did at six previous funds, Himalaya Rao-Potlapally is now leading one with a focus on Black entrepreneurship. Black Founders Matter Fund Founded in 2019, the Black Founders Matter Fund is an early-stage venture capital firm dedicated to investing in Black and diverse founders building solutions across a variety of sectors, including health, wealth, and economic mobility. The fund gained traction one year later following the racial justice movement caused by the murder of George Floyd. At the time, the Black Founders Matter Fund invested in A Kids Company About (founded by Jelani Memory), which launched a series of books co-authored by experts to help children navigate challenging topics such as autism, trauma, and racism. “It was a really cool business model, a really cool impactful model, and so we had invested in them. And then post-George Floyd’s murder, that book [“A Kids Book About Racism”] actually took off as one of the things that people were...
When Jo Opot was just 13 years old, she spent her school holidays managing her family’s small roadside food shack in Nairobi, Kenya. She’d start her days before sunrise cleaning vegetables and end them late, balancing the books and paying workers. “I have never worked so hard and earned so little,” she said in an interview with AFROTECH™. Those early days taught her about grit, resilience, and the struggles that small business owners face, especially women trying to make ends meet with limited support. Fast forward to today, and Opot is Founding Director of Gather Ventures, an impact fund with a mission close to her heart: investing in “ventures that both create climate resilience and drive asset creation for women and girls across Africa.” With a background that spans the United Nations, social innovation fellowships, and roles at TerraCycle and Acumen, she’s combining global experience with deep local understanding to make a difference. Why Climate Action And Women’s Empowerment...
Culture Wireless is on a mission to bring affordable internet, better coverage, and community ownership to places that need it most. When the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) rescinded millions in federal broadband funds, it threatened to leave Georgia’s underserved communities further behind, according to The Current. For Culture Wireless, a Black-owned internet provider co-founded by William “Bam” Sparks (chief marketing officer), the impact was deeply personal. “Personally, it affects me because it hinders people in my community from having access,” Sparks told AFROTECH™ in an interview. “The government doesn’t understand how deeply it impacts certain neighborhoods, especially on the west side of Atlanta, where there’s a digital red line and limited access to basic tools.” For Sparks, the funding cuts weren’t just setbacks — they sparked a renewed drive to build solutions beyond traditional telecom and government efforts. Culture Wireless was created to close this...
Shaquille O’Neal is paying close attention to Mark Cuban’s investment moves. Respectively, both are serial investors. Cuban’s portfolio includes Richualist, maker of The Mint hair tool. Created by Founder Dawn Myers, the company secured a $150,000 joint investment from Cuban and fellow “Shark” judge Emma Grede in 2024. The investors offered the amount up in exchange for 15% stake in the company and 5% stake through advisory shares, as AFROTECH™ previously told you. In January 2025, Cuban doubled down on an investment in Beanstack, a Black-led edtech company, participating in a $1.5 million seed round led by Riverside Acceleration Capital and Evoce Capital, per a press release. He also is the a minority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, after selling his majority stake in December 2023, per The New York Times. One of Cuban’s earliest deals, in particular, caught the attention of O’Neal, which was Broadcast.com, launched originally as AudioNet. According to CNBC, the platform,...
New funding has been raised to improve intercity travel across Africa. BuuPass Founded in 2017, BuuPass markets itself as a digital ticketing platform for bus, train, and flight purchases, its website mentions. Its inception was sparked during the 2016 Hult Prize Challenge, a global student competition that asked students that year to create something that would “better connect people to goods, services, and resources.” For company co-founders Sonia Kabra and Wyclife Omondi, this equated to making transportation more efficient in Kenya. “We’re building the infrastructure that makes modern travel work across Africa. Every new route, every operator, every integration strengthens the network,” said Sonia Kabra, co-CEO of BuuPass, according to Techcabal. The platform requires four simple steps for users, such as entering their travel dates, after which they will be shown various travel routes and pricing, per its website. Once the user selects an ideal route, they can book directly on...
A woman-owned trading finance platform is now positioned to scale its footprint in Africa. Liquify Established in 2023 by Nadya Yaremenko and Alberta Asafo-Asamoah, the Ghanaian company is the “f irst fully digital trade finance platform on the continent,” its website mentions. It exists to connect small and medium-sized enterprises in Africa with capital markets across the globe. The Condia reports that the platform allows exporters to turn unpaid invoices into cash in the same day while investors can tap into a high-yielding asset class with the added perks of short maturities and low market correlation. What’s more, Liquify has integrated AI into its due diligence process to create more competitive rates for exporters selling to investment-grade buyers along with lower operational costs. “We built Liquify to unlock the $120 billion trade-finance gap holding back Africa’s most dynamic SMEs,” Yaremenko (CEO) said, according to The Condia. $1.5M Raise Liquify has already financed $4...
Former Carolina Panther player Mike Rucker filed a lawsuit against his financial advisor, Jon Kubler, claiming that Kubler mismanaged nearly $3 million of his earnings. Rucker and his wife, Kristina, filed a lawsuit in a North Carolina Business Court in March, alleging that they had unknowingly invested in a Ponzi scheme. The couple, who met Kubler while Rucker was playing football for the University of Nebraska, claims that Kubler persuaded them to invest in his Nebraska commercial real estate company Aksarben in 2009, according to The Charlotte Observer. They say the investment was a failure and that Kubler did not return their funds or money from other investors. Of the $5.6 million Kubler and his companies — including Steelpool Inc. and Capital Synergy Partners — had raised for commercial real estate companies, only 4% of the funds were reportedly invested in the ventures. Kubler had been the Ruckers’ financial advisor for 21 years and in the early 2000s had “integrated himself...
Rapper Gunna has been prioritizing his wellness and has become co-owner of hydration brand Flerish Hydration, according to Rap Industry. For the Georgia-born entertainer, this move is fully aligned with his brand and serves as a well-intentioned strategic addition to his business portfolio. “I don’t put my name on just anything. Flerish is different, it’s clean, it works, and it’s become a part of my everyday lifestyle. I’m happy to be coming on board and look forward to the journey ahead,” Gunna told Rap Industry. View this post on Instagram A post shared by FLERISH HYDRATION (@flerish) The company offers watermelon-based products with electrolytes, real ingredients, and vitamins E, B6, and B12, as well as L-Theanine, Zinc, and Magnesium. The intention is to increase performance and recovery, which was ideal for Gunna’s on-the-go lifestyle as a performing artist. “Right now, I’m focused,” Gunna told the outlet. “There’s no off switch. I needed something that supports me naturally...
Fanbase Founder Isaac Hayes III wants content creators to understand their worth. Creators Are The New Major Network The pendulum is swinging in favor of the creator economy. According to Forbes, the top creators on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube generated $853 million in revenue, excluding brand deals and other income streams, marking an 18% increase from 2024. Collectively, these creators amassed 3.4 billion followers, a 24% jump from the previous year. By 2030, the number of creators is projected to grow from 67 million to 107 million. As AI’s influence grows across industries, content creation is expected to become even more streamlined and efficient, fueling further revenue growth. This year’s list included fashion creator Wisdom Kaye, who generated $5 million in revenue in 2024, AFROTECH™ previously reported. Kai Cenat is also listed, taking the 28th spot, with a reported $8.5 million in earnings. Cenat is well known for organically growing his presence on Twitch, which...
Richard Seymour is a minority owner in the league he once played in. A three-time NFL Super Bowl champion and Hall of Famer, Seymour played in the league for 12 seasons and earned $89.5 million in career earnings, notes Spotrac. Beyond the playing field, he has been taking charge within the business and investing arena. In fact, he co-founded 93 Ventures — named as an homage to his jersey playing for the New England Patriots — alongside venture capitalist and strategic advisor Albert G. Sye IV. According to its website, the venture capital firm is based in Atlanta and has interests in industries such as late-stage pre-IPO tech unicorns, growth-stage consumer packaged goods and fintech, and early-stage Web3. Its investment portfolio includes Lyft, Airbnb, Sundae, Dapper Labs, and Calaxy, which is a social marketplace founded by tech entrepreneur Solo Ceesay and NBA star Spencer Dinwiddie. Calaxy has direct-to-consumer monetization and is intended to create more intimate experiences...
It’s official! Detroit will have its own WNBA team, backed by familiar and notable names. NBA legends Grant Hill and Chris Webber are minority team owners of the new WNBA team. As AFROTECH™ reported, Hill and Webber joined a bid in January 2025, led by Tom Gores, the owner of the Detroit Pistons, to secure a stake in bringing a WNBA team to Detroit. Both Webber and Hill had once played in the city, representing the NBA. Now, halfway through the year, the group — which also includes football quarterback Jared Goff — has much to celebrate, as their bid for a WNBA team has been approved. The team is set to launch and begin competing by 2029, with Little Caesars Arena as its home base and a new practice facility in development, according to CBS News. “This is a huge win for Detroit and the WNBA,” Gores said, per the outlet. “Today marks the long-hoped-for return of the WNBA to a city with deep basketball roots and a championship tradition.” He added, “Detroit played a key role in the...
As college athletes begin profiting earlier in their careers, they’re also making smarter decisions sooner. Many college athletes have been able to directly profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL) after NCAA members approved an interim policy in 2021. All three NCAA divisions suspended NIL restrictions for incoming and current student-athletes, AFROTECH™ reported; this includes VJ Edgecombe, a 2025 NBA first-round draft pick, who earned $1.4 million in NIL deals thanks to partnerships with Panini America and PSD Underwear. The top college basketball earner is AJ Dybantsa, who has a $4.1 million NIL valuation while representing the Brigham Young University (BYU) Cougars, AFROTECH™ previously reported. College athletes aren’t just pocketing earnings for short-term gain; they’re thinking long-term and making strategic financial moves well before going pro. Quarterbacks LaNorris Sellers (University of South Carolina) and Kevin Jennings (Southern Methodist University) recently...
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...
