6 Startup Investors On What It Will Take To Fund More Black Founders
THE SO WHAT
Investors rethinking sourcing and networks to reach more Black founders is less about DEI optics and more about expanding deal flow beyond the same recycled circles. If you run a fund or corp dev, your edge may come from the rooms you’re not currently in.
READ THE SOURCE
MORE FROM THE WIRE
Startups & VentureUW grad’s startup idea comes into focus with a digital marketplace for photographers
A vertical marketplace for photographers is a reminder that even in an AI-saturated photo world, coordination and trust still create value. If you’re building in services, lean into reputation, scheduling, and payments—places where automation helps but humans still anchor the product.
Startups & VentureSources: Donald Trump Jr. got ~$300K in Kalshi equity after becoming a strategic adviser in 2025, when Kalshi was valued at ~$2B; now it's worth $22B+
A 10x move from ~$2B to $22B+ in a regulated prediction market under a light-touch US regime shows how fast policy can reprice niche infra into core financial plumbing. If your product sits near a regulatory boundary, board-level attention to policy strategy is now a valuation lever, not a compliance footnote.
Startups & VentureDenmark’s EIFO Invests €200 Million in EU Fund for Tech Scale-Up
A €200M state-backed anchor into a €5B Scaleup Europe Fund is Europe trying to solve its Series C–pre‑IPO gap at the fund level, not company by company. If you’re a European growth-stage founder, this is a signal to prep for more local capital with policy strings attached—governance and HQ decisions will matter.
The new place to advertise your celeb-filled Series A funding round is ... a NYC bodega?
Turning a NYC bodega wall into a Series A investor flex is a tell—consumer startups are marketing their cap table as much as their product to manufacture social proof. If you’re competing in the same segments, expect customer and talent perception to be shaped by who backs you, not just what you ship.