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uLesson — a Nigerian-based edtech startup — announced this week that it raised a $7.5 million Series A funding round for its online learning platform making remote teaching easier for students. Through both streamings and the use of SD cards, uLesson — the self-proclaimed No. 1 learning app — is able to minimize data and streaming costs in an effort to bridge the education gap within Nigeria and Africa as a whole, Tech in Africa reports. According to TechCrunch, this funding round was led by Owl Ventures — the largest venture capital fund in the world focused on the education technology market — along with other participants such as LocalGlobe and existing investors, TLcom Capital and Founder Collective. This new financing arrives just little over a year after uLesson closed its initial $3.1 million seed round back in November 2019. Since then, the company’s value proposition has increased largely due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the world’s education systems. Just...
Being Black is not a monolith, which is why the culture’s approach to gaming is not something that is one-size-fits-all. That said, Xbox is on a mission to revolutionize the industry by offering a variety of games that fit the many needs of those playing. Beyond those who play games, there is also a space for those who have an interest in creating them over at the Microsoft-led company. One of the latest games that stem from Xbox is South of Midnight, a spellbinding third-person action-adventure game set in the American Deep South. Designed to celebrate Black heritage and Southern culture, the project follows main character Hazel, who was created by Compulsion Game’s, Zaire Lanier, who serves as the writer and narrative designer on the game. “When creating Hazel, for me, it was important to not think of Blackness as a monolith,” she said during the “ WOVEN: The Power of Black Voices in Gaming” panel at Microsoft’s Black TechXcellence House during the AFROTECH™ Conference 2024. ...
Bias is often at the root of protracted issues in society. The insurance industry, for example, isn’t exempt from prejudicial attitudes. Salene Hitchcock-Gear, president of Prudential Individual Life Insurance at Prudential Financial, spoke on the history of exclusion in the 1940s and 1950s during the 2023 AFROTECH™ Conference. “Way back when things were first getting started, there were a lot of exclusions on who could be covered for insurance — Black Americans were part of that exclusion,” Hitchcock-Gear said on the Learning Lab stage. “There was a lot of bias around the kind of data that we actually have to use to underwrite, i ncluding race and health. There was a lot of presumption about lifestyle. A lot of things that just did not really lend itself to treating people fairly.” Because insurance products can be critical for financial stability and creating wealth, she shared that Prudential Financial continues to try to modernize and use digital tools to increase access to...
Will.i.am believes creatives will continue to stand the test of times in the midst of artificial intelligence (AI). One Step Ahead In Technology The rapper and singer-songwriter has been ahead of the curve of technology for quite some time. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, he was an early investor in Beats Electronics and even incorporated their technology in the Black Eyed Peas’ “Boom Boom Pow” music video 15 years ago. He reportedly made a fortune from the investment when Apple acquired Beats Electronics and Beats Music for an amount nearing $3 billion. Will.i.am’s interests in technology have only widened since then. He invested in machine learning startup Inflection AI, and through a private investment group he has invested in additional companies empowered by AI such as: Udio Anthropic OpenAi Runaway FYI (Focus Your Ideas) He is also leading change through his own company FYI (Focus Your Ideas). As AFROTECH™ previously reported it is an AI-driven collaboration platform created...
Elise Smith is helping to create better outcomes for diverse employees. She is the co-founder and CEO of Praxis Labs, an “immersive practice-based platform that drives inclusive, engaged, and higher-performing teams,” a press release mentioned. The platform offers has assisted companies including Google, Uber, and ServiceNow to help achieve benchmarks that boost engagement and lead to retention, enhance company culture, and increase equity and inclusion. “For me, it’s how do we use technology to help us become even better humans, to help us be able to give feedback across differences, to navigate difficult conversations, to provide performance feedback and expectations with accountability and care in a way that actually serves us all better, that creates more value for everyone, doesn’t cause harm,” she told AFROTECH™. “We’re seeing our workplaces need that more than ever.” To date, Praxis Labs has raised $23 million, per digitalundivided. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Praxis...
While working in the music industry, many artists make the smart move and don’t limit themselves to only excelling in music. Will.i.am is among such musicians who are the definition of “multi-hyphenate.” As an entertainer, record producer, tech entrepreneur, and founder, the East Los Angeles, CA, native has built an extensive resume for himself. “Investor” is yet another title under his growing list of endeavors. In an interview with the “Drink Champs” podcast, Will.i.am recounted two specific investments he’s made thus far. When asked by host N.O.R.E. whether he’d choose Steve Jobs or Elon Musk — like in a game of “This or That” — Will.i.am was prompted to share how both CEOs have made an impact on his life. “I invested in Tesla in 2006 before Elon took over [the company] — around the same time,” Will.i.am explained on the podcast. He continued, “And then, I was a part of Beats. And then, Apple bought Beats from us. So you’re talking about two companies that changed my life. So, I...
Dr. Benjamin Harvey liquidated his retirement accounts to make advancements in the world of artificial intelligence (AI), Forbes reports. Harvey, born in Jacksonville, FL, and raised in a seven-child household, found his love for the field of technology thanks to his father, who worked as a pastor and AT&T project manager, the outlet notes. His father would bring home computers that were not functioning properly, and Harvey took the initiative to learn how to fix them. Foreshadowing his future, he would obtain a computer science degree from HBCU Mississippi Valley State University in 2008. He later scaled his education obtaining a master’s degree and Ph.D. in the same field between 2010 and 2015, his LinkedIn profile mentions. Among his career pathways included a role as chief of operations data science at the National Security Agency (NSA). His observation at the agency would open his eyes to a gap in the market as it pertains to data and analytics. It wouldn’t be until 2021 that...
The PGA Tour is being questioned for negligence with its use of artificial intelligence (AI). In a TikTok video, AI ethicist Paige Lord shared AI-generated images of golfers Tony Finau and Collin Morikawa that have raised concerns. “Here we have two players of color who are portrayed in environments that are very different than all of the other environments,” Lord said in the video. @thepaigelord Was there bias in the @PGATOUR AI headshots? #ai #pga #golf #pgatour #aiethics #algorithmicbias #reaponsibleai #ml #aiml #greenscreen ♬ original sound – Paige Lord
Back in 2020, Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic” was archived in the Library of Congress, as previously reported by AFROTECH. The Library of Congress selected the mogul’s 1992 debut studio album as one of the 25 “aural treasures worthy of preservation because of their cultural, historical and aesthetic importance to the nation’s recorded sound heritage.”
You’re never too young to develop financial literacy skills! According to Black Business, 11-year-old Caden Harris has taken in tons of knowledge when it comes to the financial sector, and now he is working to help others do the same. At the tender age of seven, thanks to the support of his parents, Caden launched his very first business. By age eight, he had written his first book and now, in the double-digits, he’s purchased a 54-seat passenger bus. His goal is to raise funds in order to transform the bus into a traveling mobile unit to teach financial literacy to students at local schools. This is not anything new for Caden, who continuously gets tapped by local schools, youth church groups, and Boys & Girls Clubs, and has also already created products to teach children financial literacy. As he expands his efforts even more with the bus, Caden’s mobile financial learning bus will include more ways of shaping the minds of the youth when it comes to learning how to earn, save and...
As we move toward a world that is increasingly and undeniably reliant on digital technologies, it’s pretty safe to declare that tech is the way of the future. But what about the 19 million Americans who don’t have access to the resources that make that future possible? Verizon is making a commitment to step in and change that. The tech leader lives the ethos that “The future is for everyone,” and thanks to its responsible business plan, it’s ensuring that those digital futures become a reality. Enter Rose Stuckey Kirk, Senior Vice President and Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer for Verizon, who heads the team responsible for leveraging the technology and resources that help drive positive societal change for vulnerable populations. In her 20+ years of working with Verizon, Kirk has seen the company bear witness to many social changes. In her current role, she oversees its corporate social responsibility investment strategy and its successful rollout. The Fight for...
FedEx has announced the launch of a brand-new initiative that’s helping small diverse businesses adapt to e-commerce models. An announcement from the company shares that the FedEx E-Commerce Learning Lab — developed in collaboration with nonprofit organization Accion Opportunity Fund (AOF) — is a hands-on program that’s designed to help diverse small business owners create and/or expand their e-commerce operations to innovate their business models. The FedEx E-Commerce Learning Lab — which is funded by a $1 million grant — was created out of a desire to help support women and people of color entrepreneurs whose businesses have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. As a result of the pandemic and social distancing rules, online shopping has become a wildly popular trend amongst consumers over the last year. However, many businesses were not equipped with a website or online shop to capitalize on this opportunity, especially Black, women and people of color-owned...
Over two million Black men in the U.S. have unfinished college degrees, and Morehouse College is on a mission to fix that. Earlier this month, Morehouse College — the nation’s only HBCU dedicated to developing and educating men — announced the launch of its newest initiative Morehouse Online — an online undergraduate program that’s helping Black men who started their undergraduate studies finish and obtain a bachelor’s degree in their respective major. Morehouse Online arrives at the turning point of the university’s digital transformation to make e-learning more inclusive. A press release shares that the new program is part of a strategy to create more innovative and robust programs for non-traditional college students. “There has never been a more important time for the impact of Morehouse to scale,” said Dr. David A. Thomas, president of Morehouse College, in a press statement. “The challenges we face as a society today require exceptional leaders with superior critical thinking...