African American Lead Technology Startup In Los Angeles Raises $225 million

A new American startup is creating history by receiving the largest investment ever for an African American lead technology startup in the nation.

Black Unicorn Factory is an African American startup that is about to take the US by storm with its game-changing strategy for businesses. This enterprising new development program, now commonly referred to as an 'accelerator' is set to receive $225 million dollars in funding from investors.

This is historic because currently only 1% of all Venture Capital is invested in African American Startups. This to date is the first and largest investment made by any investor in an African American lead Technology startup in the US. Currently, there are over 500 Unicorns in the world but not one is owned by an African American.

John Stewart, the CEO of this new startup talked bullishly about the potential of this new accelerator platform “This is a real game-changer in Financial Technology” This is the first time ever, the average hard-working, paycheck to paycheck earner, can invest in Billion-Dollar Tech Startups that were once reserved only for the rich, this has the potential to be huge and affect the lives of many.“

Black Unicorn Factory specializes in turning normal small startups into startups that stand head and shoulders above the rest. You might be thinking, what do they mean by unicorns? Well, the name unicorn refers to a tech company with an evaluation of one billion dollars or more. In essence, Black Unicorn Factory is hoping to help people achieve this level of success.

Black Unicorn Factory has gained a reputation for being one of the nation’s best growth hackers. With their expertise and drive, they have the ability to transfer any tech startup into a profitable, Billion Dollar Tech startup.

John Stewart also touched upon the process of how they were able to get to this point.
"This was thought by many to be impossible, but we have obviously now shattered that belief.
We have been beta testing our system for eight years now and I am delighted to say that we have now perfected the process"

It does indeed appear that all other Venture Capital backed startups have competition now! This startup claims that their Unicorns are going to be Bigger, Faster, Smarter, and Stronger than other Unicorns.

They also have a program called the Wealth Gap App with the slogan “Follow me for equity". If someone simply agrees to follow a company on social media they can “Earn Equity” in that unicorn. This means millions can now invest in Billion-dollar tech startups without having to invest a single dollar.

The Black Unicorn Factory target market is “Indigent Investors”. They are seeking people from all types of different backgrounds who feel that they have had enough of being restricted financially. As already alluded to, they are targeting people who once believed that these options were only regarded for the rich. In doing so changing the way we think about investing.

There are over 50 companies in the Black Union Factory, and all of these companies are on a clear path to going public in 12 months. Their exit strategy gives the investor a way to cash the stock that they receive. Our program also teaches those new to invest in the process of investing and evaluating companies.

To conclude this is a landmark moment in the history of startup companies in the tech arena. What this company has been able to achieve is remarkable and when you consider the historical context of their achievements, it only makes it more impressive. The average American is never invited to invest in a unicorn company before it goes public so this really does present a fantastic opportunity.

The CEO of this company John Stewart has Over 30 years of experience in building Startups, he can be described as a serial Entrepreneur, Activist, Author, Investor, Philanthropist, speaker, and mentor.

John Stewart
Black Unicorn Factory
+1 310-362-6999
email us here

Peggy Alford First African American Woman Nominated to Facebook Board of Directors

MENLO PARK, Calif., April 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Facebook has announced that Peggy Alford, Senior Vice President, Core Markets of PayPal Holdings, Inc., has been nominated for election to the company's board of directors at its annual meeting of stockholders to be held on May 30, 2019.

Founded in 2004, Facebook's mission is to make the world more open and connected. People use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what's going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them. (PRNewsfoto/Facebook, Inc.)

Mark Zuckerberg, Founder and Chairman/CEO of Facebook said: "Peggy is one of those rare people who's an expert across many different areas — from business management to finance operations to product development. I know she will have great ideas that help us address both the opportunities and challenges facing our company."

"What excites me about the opportunity to join Facebook's board is the company's drive and desire to face hard issues head-on while continuing to improve on the amazing connection experiences they have built over the years," said Peggy Alford. "I look forward to working with Mark and the other directors as the company builds new and inspiring ways to help people connect and build community."

Ms. Alford has served as Senior Vice President, Core Markets of PayPal Holdings, Inc., a digital payments company, since March 2019. From September 2017 to February 2019, Ms. Alford served as Chief Financial Officer and Head of Operations for the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a philanthropic organization. Ms. Alford previously held a variety of senior positions at PayPal from May 2011 to August 2017, including Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of Americas, Global Customer and Global Credit, and Senior Vice President of Human Resources, People Operations and Global Head of Cross Border Trade. From 2007 to 2011, Ms. Alford served as President and General Manager of Rent.com, an eBay Inc. company, and also served as its Chief Financial Officer from October 2005 to March 2009. From 2002 to 2005, Ms. Alford served as Marketplace Controller and Director of Accounting Policy at eBay. Ms. Alford currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Macerich Company, a real estate investment trust. Ms. Alford holds a B.S. in accounting and business administration from the University of Dayton.

Facebook's current board members are: Mark Zuckerberg; Marc L. Andreessen, Andreessen Horowitz; Erskine B. Bowles, President Emeritus, University of North Carolina; Kenneth I. Chenault, Chairman and Managing Director, General Catalyst; Susan D. Desmond-Hellmann, CEO, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Reed Hastings, Chairman and CEO, Netflix; Sheryl K. Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer, Facebook; Peter A. Thiel, Founders Fund; and Jeffrey D. Zients, CEO, the Cranemere Group. Mr. Bowles and Mr. Hastings, who have both served on the board since 2011, will not be nominated for re-election at the 2019 annual meeting of stockholders.

Black Caucus member tells Zuckerberg Facebook is 'not nearly' diverse enough

Congressional Black Caucus member G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C., told Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Wednesday that his efforts to include more black people on his company's leadership team have so far fallen short of meeting the goal of diversity.

Zuckerberg said Facebook has increased its representation of black employees from 2 percent to 3 percent, and said the company has implemented several diversity initiatives, but Butterfield said that isn't good enough.

“While this is a small increase, it’s better than none,” Butterfield said. “And this does not nearly meet the definition of building a racially diverse community.”

Butterfield also said a glance at Facebook's leadership team online shows a lack of diversity. That page lists just a few people on the leadership team: Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Financial Officer Dave Wehner, Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer, and Chief Product Officer Chris Cox.

“This is your leadership team, and this does not reflect America,” Butterfield said. “Can you improve the numbers on your leadership team to be more diverse?”

Zuckerberg told the Democratic congressman it was an “issue that we’re focused on,” but said the company has a “broader leadership than just five people.”

“It’s not on your website,” Butterfield responded. “We can do better than that. We certainly can. Do you plan to add an African-American to your leadership team in the foreseeable future and will you commit that you will continue to work with us, the Congressional Black Caucus, to increase diversity within your company that you’re so proud of?”

Read more: Black Caucus member tells Zuckerberg Facebook is 'not nearly' diverse enough.

Facebook appoints first African American to its Board of Directors

Facebook announced today the addition of Kenneth I. Chenault, CEO of American Express, to its board of directors. His appointment becomes effective Feb. 5, 2018.

“I’ve been trying to recruit Ken for years,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a press release. “He has unique expertise in areas I believe Facebook needs to learn and improve — customer service, direct commerce, and building a trusted brand. Ken also has a sense of social mission and integrity I admire and the perspective that comes from running an important public company for decades.”

Chenault, who joined American Express in 1981, has been chairman and CEO of the massive financial services company since 2001. In addition to serving on Facebook’s board, Chenault serves on the boards of IBM, Procter & Gamble, the Harvard Corporation and others.

Unlike Facebook’s other board members, Chenault is black. In fact, Chenault is the first black person to serve on Facebook’s board of directors.

“I’m delighted to join the board and look forward to working with Mark and the other directors as Facebook continues to build communities that help bring people closer to friends, family and the world around them,” Chenault said in a press release.

[SOURCE: TECHCRUNCH]

Morehouse sophomore invents app to help students find jobs

Courtlynd “Justice” Mallory is a sophomore Business Management major from Albany, New York at Morehouse College. In August of 2016, Justice formed Mallory Integration, L.L.C. During his freshman year of college, he started his journey at Morehouse as a Chemistry major.

“I was a chemistry major and still wasn’t sure about what I wanted to do with a science degree so I began thinking about a new major and during that time I was trying to find a summer job. I tried to use one of the large job-finding sites and found it confusing.”

He says that it was this confusion that led him to create the Werk app available on the Android App Store.

“It seemed as if I would create accounts and receive tons of emails everyday but I’d still find myself to be unemployed. I finally did get a job after meeting with Human Resource workers directly and they informed me of their physical recruitment efforts despite their attempts at advertising.”

After much reflection on the issue Justice created the job finding site. He says that the app is meant for high school and college students. The big difference between the Werk App and many other mobile employment services is that, it doesn’t have ads. Justice told The Buzz that by cutting ad revenue and rejecting third party invitations the Werk App offers the only free tool with premium access for all members.

By having this in place the Werk App makes it easy to apply for jobs and internships from phones or laptops with ease. Not only is the app of benefit to its users but employers as well. Employers also get the added benefit of submitting their job listing to the most effective site on the web for the cheapest price.

To create an employer account on the Werk site, a company will pay less per year as they pay per month using the larger, less effective job sites. The Werk App currently offer job offers nationwide and their database gets larger by the day, with over 20,000 offered jobs and internships.

Justice Mallory doesn’t plan on just stopping there. It looks like he may have a future in venture capitalism. After he graduates from Morehouse, he plans to return and invest into the ideas of the students.

“Many of my peers have amazing ideas and ambitions. My hope is to come back and invest in these dreams to see that all of these incredible young men and women in the AUC have the capital needed to take the next step and pursue their projects.”

We are proud of the work that Justice Mallory is doing. To learn more about Justice and the Werk App visit http://www.werkapponline.com/

[SOURCE: HBCUBUZZ]

Howard University campus opening at Google in diversity push

Google is trying something new to boost diversity.

The tech giant is partnering with Howard University to launch "Howard West," a three-month summer program open to rising juniors and seniors studying computer science.

The 25 to 30 students selected for this summer's program will be taught by senior Google engineers and Howard faculty on Google's Mountain View campus and will receive a stipend for housing and other expenses in Silicon Valley.

Alanna Walton, a junior majoring in computer science at Howard, said students are excited about the program.

"There are no HBCUs (historically black colleges and universities) on the West Coast. To bring a whole bunch of black students to the West Coast to learn is a great experience," she told CNNTech. "Pretty much the whole campus understands how big this is."

Google (GOOG) plans to expand the program to other historically black colleges and universities in the "near future." Howard called the move a "major step forward" for Google's efforts to recruit and keep diverse talent.

Read more:Howard University campus opening at Google in diversity push

Apple investors reject diversity proposal

Apple touts its commitment to diversity, but its shareholders don’t seem to care all that much about it.

On Tuesday, Apple investors overwhelmingly rejected a proposal that would have urged the company to ramp up its efforts to hire African Americans, Latinos and other people of color for its board of directors and senior management positions. As is the case at many tech companies, members of such groups have been underrepresented at Apple compared with the general population.

The vote marked the second year in a row shareholders have rejected the proposal, which called for Apple to have an “accelerated recruitment policy” to diversify its leadership ranks. Because it received less than 6 percent of shareholder votes this year, Apple can block it from appearing on its proxy ballot next year, supporters noted.

Read more: Apple investors reject diversity proposal

Black engineers in Silicon Valley get big assist

Ime Archibong was eating lunch on Facebook's Silicon Valley campus with former colleague Makinde Adeagbo last year when Adeagbo pitched the idea for /dev/color, a nonprofit organization to bring together and grow the ranks of African-American software developers.

"We sat outside, right in front of the ice cream shop, and he was painting this vision for me of what he wanted to do," Archibong recalls.

Adeagbo, who at the time worked at Pinterest, was one of the first black software engineers at Facebook and had forged a career path for other black engineers to follow. Now he aspired to do the same thing, only on an industrywide scale.

"That is something I cannot help but get behind," Archibong, a software engineer who is now Facebook's director of strategic partnerships, told USA TODAY.

/dev/color, a support network for engineers of color, officially launched a year ago and has since grown to 114 members, all black, many of whom often found themselves feeling isolated while navigating an industry dominated by white and Asian men.

On Friday, /dev/color held its inaugural conference on Facebook's campus — "Onwards and Upwards: Advancing the careers of black software engineers" — headlined by venture capitalist Ben Horowitz and Facebook chief technology officer Mike Schroepfer and featuring sessions on such topics as how to go from engineer to manager and how to build a business with an engineering background.

Read more: Black engineers in Silicon Valley get big assist

Airbnb makes changes to halt racist, discriminatory practices

Airbnb announced potentially far-reaching anti-discrimination policies Thursday in response to complaints about hosts' racism against black and other Airbnb guests that came to the fore in the spring, crystalizing around the hashtag #AirbnbWhileBlack.

One change automatically blocks out a host’s reservation calendar for dates they have told a would-be guest are not available. This is to deal with a problem African-Americans and others have described: after requesting a booking, they're told the listing is no longer available, only to find the booking is still available when someone with a profile photo that shows them to be white, or obscures their race, inquires about it.

The new features will be implemented in the first half of 2017, Airbnb said.

Read more: Airbnb makes changes to halt racist, discriminatory practices

Google adds first black board member.

Google parent company Alphabet is adding finance chops and diversity to its board with the appointment of economist Roger Ferguson.

Ferguson is the first African American to serve on the board of Alphabet and Google, marking a major milestone in Google's effort to bring more diversity to the technology industry.

Ferguson will serve on Alphabet's audit committee. With his appointment, he receives a $1 million equity grant, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

[SOURCE]

Jesse Jackson presses Facebook on lack of diversity

[SOURCE] Jesse Jackson isn’t keeping quiet about the lack of diversity in the tech industry’s ranks.

The civil rights veteran and former presidential candidate plans to attend Facebook’s annual shareholders meeting in Redwood City today, pressing the company to include more minorities on its board and within its executive ranks. He has paid similar visits to shareholder meetings of eBay, Google and Hewlett-Packard this spring.

“At its best, technology can be a tremendously positive change agent for the world,” Jackson said, in a prepared statement. “At its worst, it can hold on to old patterns that exclude people of color and women from opportunity and advancement. Silicon Valley and the tech industry must transform itself to mirror the America it depends upon for talent and customers.”

Staff diversity among tech companies has come under increasing scrutiny, with many critics decrying a “bro culture” that often tends to be white and male. Jackson and his Rainbow PUSH Coalition are trying to focus some of that attention on the lack of diversity in the tech world’s board rooms and C-suites.

They’ve had some small successes. Last week, Google announced it would release a report that includes race and gender statistics for its workforce.