The year 2022 was quite eventful and one of many firsts for us including the inaugural AFROTECH™ Future 50.
Now, for its second consecutive year, the list of today’s Black tech innovators and leaders is coming in heavy with a new lineup and even bigger energy.
After nominations opened in February and closed the following month, our 50 honorees are now officially in and live.
The Future 50 list features the likes of Me & the Bees Lemonade’s Mikaila Ulmer, the young CEO who first started her business at age four to Brian Hollins, the founder and managing partner of Collide Capital, the first VC fund to be simultaneously backed by Amazon, Alphabet, and Twitter.
“I am thrilled to announce AfroTech’s 2023 Future 50 honorees,” Simone White, Senior Vice President of AfroTech, shared in a statement. “By honoring our community leaders and changemakers, we are celebrating their achievements while amplifying their voices and paving the way for a more diverse and inclusive industry. I look forward to seeing the impact these honorees will have on the tech world and beyond.”
The esteemed group will be honored in our digital hub as well as across our social media platforms. To top it off, one individual from each of the categories will be honored in person at a later date.
In the search for 50 Black founders, venture capitalists, technologists, and change makers across the tech industry, the meticulous selection process sought individuals within each of the following distinguished categories:
Dynamic Investor Award: With disruption comes change, which these recipients fully understand. Taking into account who is overlooked and underserved in receiving financial business investments, these investors are growing their portfolios with companies that are pushing the envelope in their respective industries.
Future of Tech Award: Tech is the future, and so are the trailblazing youth that are pushing it forward and taking it to new heights. This award recognizes young Black startup founders who are behind ingenious innovations designed to change the world as we know it.
Founder of the Year Award: The recipients of this high honor are founders and co-founders who have developed products that are solution-based for people of color, as well as who place underrepresented communities at the forefront of their overall mission.
Changemaker Award: Diversity is one of the main pillars in the movement for creating a changed world. These award honorees are leading the way for advancement through their companies and respective communities.
Corporate Catalyst Award: This award recognizes mid-career or vice president-level individuals who are actively making efforts to push toward a more inclusive, diverse ecosystem for underrepresented groups.
Take a look at the full list for the 2023 AFROTECH™ Future 50 here.
