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Detroit, MI, native Eminem is joining a list of individuals, such as former NBA players Grant Hill and Chris Webber, to bring a WNBA team to the city, according to Sportico. The 15-time Grammy Award-winning rapper — born Marshall Mathers — is part of a group led by Tom Gores and the Detroit Pistons. “This is an exciting opportunity to welcome the WNBA back to Detroit and bring additional investment and economic activity into the city,” Gores said previously, per AFROTECH™. “For the WNBA, this is home, and our bid represents an unprecedented opportunity for the league to come full circle and effect a long-hoped-for Detroit homecoming. No city is more prepared to embrace the team as a community asset that drives unity and common ground.” According to Sportico, the franchise would play at Little Caesars Arena, which cost $863 million to build and is home to the Pistons and Red Wings. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Michigan’s largest city had a WNBA team called the Detroit Shock from...
Stefanie Thomas-Martin has been promoted after spearheading a $50 million investment vehicle. The Wall Street veteran, who holds an MBA from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, joined Zeal Capital Partners—a Washington, D.C.-based venture capital firm focused on early-stage technology businesses —as its managing director in 2023. Before that, she was a founding member and investor at Impact America Fund (IAF), where she helped grow the company’s assets under management from $7 million to $110 million, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. Thomas-Martin was entrusted with leading the VC firm’s $50 million Barclays Black Formation Investment (BBFI) vehicle, which funds Black-led companies leveraging services and technology to bridge wealth and skills gaps. She not only successfully led the initiative but also launched its first scout program to train the next generation of venture capitalists. Her efforts have led to her promotion from managing director to partner,...
Vista Equity Partners Chairman and CEO Robert F. Smith believes diversity will overcome. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts are being dismantled, causing a ripple effect across various sectors. According to a news release, the White House issued executive orders to end all DEI practices in the federal workforce and in federal contracting and spending. This resulted in federal employees in DEI roles being placed on paid leave. A Maryland federal judge has since blocked portions of Trump’s executive orders, including a halt on federal contracts tied to DEI and restrictions on private companies with DEI programs, according to JD Supra. Furthermore, some companies have shifted their policies to align with the Trump administration, which some attribute to political pressures from conservative groups and figures such as Robby Starbuck. Companies that have adopted anti-DEI agendas include Target, which led to the retail giant being sued by its...
If you’ve grown up in the digital age , you likely have some understanding of how unreliable information spreads across the net. Millennials far and wide have been inundated with enough YouTube troll comments, Nigerian prince emails and “free iPhone” pop-ups to build a healthy skepticism of internet browsing. Now, it seems that this learning curve has become a perennial part of growing up, as Gen Z and Gen Alpha are surmising that social media apps like TikTok are rife with terrible financial advice. New studies from researchers at Intuit Credit Karma estimate that over 77 percent of Gen Z kids are looking to influencers on the short-form video app for money management, while roughly 61 percent of millennials are doing the same on YouTube and Facebook . In order to understand just how damaging these financial words of wisdom can be to a growing audience of youngsters, lets take a moment to briefly run through the data, and see exactly where young people are being led astray. After...
Veolia North America, an engineering firm, has agreed to pay $53 million for its alleged role in the ongoing lead-tainted water crisis plaguing Flint, MI, since April 2014. In exchange for the settlement, Michigan has agreed to dismiss its civil lawsuit against the Boston, MA-based company, which will pay 26,000 individual Flint plaintiffs suing them in separate litigation, according to The Detroit News. “After years of drawn-out legal battles, this settlement finally closes a chapter for Flint residents,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said on Feb. 21, 2025. “While no amount of money can fully repair the damage caused to the Flint community, these funds will provide additional resources to those directly impacted, especially Flint children, by this preventable crisis.” Flint’s water crisis started when the city, under state-controlled emergency management, switched its drinking water source from Detroit’s Lake Huron to the Flint River while construction was underway on the...
Artificial intelligence is a powerful tool, but its effectiveness depends on how well you communicate with it. Whether you’re drafting emails, creating social media content, or tackling complex problem-solving, refining your approach to AI prompts can make a significant difference. By understanding key prompting techniques, you can guide AI to generate more precise, relevant, and valuable responses. How Different Prompting Techniques Shape AI Responses Zero-shot prompting allows AI to generate responses without any prior examples. This method helps brainstorm fresh ideas, generate unbiased perspectives, or explore open-ended requests. For instance, if you ask AI to “Write a social media post about the benefits of remote work,” it will create a response based purely on its training data without any specific context. However, when you need a more structured response, few-shot prompting offers a way to refine AI’s output. By providing a few sample responses, you help AI understand the...
Student loan borrowers may be experiencing whiplash this year, as the rules and guidelines for repayment have continued to see massive sweeping changes. If you’ve been following along with political news in recent months, you’re likely already aware of the fact that president Donald Trump has plans to dismantle – and perhaps entirely abolish , the Department of Education. This is a far cry from Joe Biden’s economic plans , which included wiping out millions in student loan debt over the course of his term, and setting the stage for additional loan forgiveness down the line. Whether you’re a borrower concerned about your financial future, or just a passive onlooker questioning the economic impact of Trump’s many executive orders , you may be interested in what happens to unpaid student loans when and if the Department of Education goes the way of the dodo bird. Luckily we’ve got you covered, with a comprehensive look into the history of the Department of Education, what Trump is...
This year, Morehouse College’s A Candle in the Dark Gala shattered expectations, raising an unprecedented $6.8 million for scholarships that will directly impact the lives of current and future students. As one of the most prestigious fundraising events, the gala in Atlanta, GA, celebrates Morehouse’s legacy and its unwavering commitment to empowering young men and strengthening the community. Among the evening’s most compelling moments was the heartfelt address from Rashaun Williams, a Morehouse alum, investor, and philanthropist, who is a 2025 recipient of the Bennie Award and recognized as a Trailblazer. He spoke about the institution’s transformative role in his life. Williams, who has built a career investing in emerging businesses and supporting economic empowerment, credited Morehouse with stepping in when he needed guidance, structure, and a sense of belonging. “Morehouse was my first investor. You’re looking at the return on investment that you get when you invest in...
Former PepsiCo President and entrepreneur Derek Lewis has added another franchise to his portfolio. Lewis secured a deal with Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks, granting him ten locations in Central Florida, AFROTECH™ previously told you. He is also the restaurant’s first franchisee, which Derrick Hayes founded. According to information shared with AFROTECH™, Lewis celebrated the grand opening of two locations at Camping World Stadium in November 2024. “This expansion represents our commitment to bringing authentic Philly-style cheesesteaks to sports and entertainment venues across Florida,” said Derek Lewis in a news release. “We’re creating more than just restaurants; we’re building community gathering spots where food brings people together.” More recently, Lewis partnered with Philly Pretzel Factory and is spearheading its expansion throughout the Orlando area. “Soft pretzels are woven into Philadelphia’s cultural fabric, and I’ve craved their distinctive taste since childhood,” said...
In a move that has sparked considerable debate, PBS announced the closure of its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) office, citing compliance with executive orders issued by President Donald Trump. According to Deadline, the decision was confirmed through a memo from PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger, marking a significant rollback of the organization’s DEI efforts — a trend increasingly observed across public and private sectors as political pressures increase. A Sudden Shift In Strategy As reported by The New York Times reporter Ben Mullin via X (formerly Twitter), the memo revealed that PBS’s DEI office would be shuttered and that key leaders Cecilia Loving, senior vice president of DEI, and Gina Leow, director of DEI, would be departing the organization. Kerger noted, “To ensure that we are complying with the president’s executive order, we have closed our DEI office, and Cecilia Loving and Gina Leow are leaving PBS.” Adding to the dissonance is the fact that this...
A group of HBCU students were awarded during the week of Super Bowl LIX for their innovative pitch in sports technology. Diverse Representation, a company focused on increasing the number of Black agents, attorneys, managers, and publicists across sports, hosted its inaugural HBCU Sports Business Pitch Competition in New Orleans, LA, in partnership with the talent agency William Morris Endeavor (WME) on Friday, Feb. 7, 2025, during Super Bowl LIX week. According to information shared with AFROTECH™, the competition was launched to provide local HBCU student entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch sports-related concepts for a chance to receive funding and connect with decision-makers in the industry. “When I initially launched Diverse Representation, I’ve always been very, very clear about what our mission is: to help Black professionals in the sports and entertainment industry,” Diverse Representation Founder Jaia Thomas told AFROTECH™. “Not minorities, not people of color—Black...
There were great sacrifices that Fawn and Keith Weaver made to ensure that the Uncle Nearest whiskey brand would not fail. Today, Uncle Nearest is recognized as a force within the spirits industry, reflecting the resilience of Fawn, whose story is one of overcoming adversity with triumph. She dropped out of school in 10th grade, bounced between homeless shelters, and attempted to take her life twice. She viewed her struggles as affirmation of a higher calling — one that has materialized into an award-winning whiskey brand that has topped a billion-dollar valuation and is the fastest-growing American whiskey in history, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. The inception of Uncle Nearest resulted from relentless research Fawn conducted in Lynchburg, TN, to uncover the story of Nathan “Nearest” Green. Enslaved at the time, Green was responsible for teaching Jasper Newton “Jack” Daniel how to make whiskey using the technique known as “sugar maple charcoal filtering.” Some call this the...
If you’ve been tapped in to the world of business news in recent months, you’re likely well aware that DEI measures are firmly on the chopping block, thanks to the Trump administration . The DEI framework, which seeks to support diversity, equity and inclusion within the workplace, has been an invaluable tool in the national marketplace to ensure that those in marginalized communities are given a fair shot at employment and upward mobility. Much like other social programs, such as affirmative action, DEI has been integral to the success of disabled individuals, underprivileged youths and those who identify as part of the LGBTQ community . Unfortunately, a powerful minority of fringe right-wing lawmakers have taken issue with DEI initiatives and have quixotically maligned the entire practice as discriminatory. Since the newly established White House cabinet has become so dead-set on eliminating DEI measures across the board, legal requirements for fair hiring practices have already...
Publisher Seko Varner is making connecting with Black-owned businesses in the Hampton Roads area easier than ever. Varner, a multifaceted leader who serves as president and financial consultant for the entertainment and consulting company Positive Vibes Inc., has introduced The Hampton Roads Greenbook, a directory that spotlights and supports Black-owned businesses in the region. The Hampton Roads Greenbook was inspired by Victor Hugo Green’s Negro Travelers’ Green Book. Green, a postal carrier in Harlem, originally created the guide to help Black travelers navigate safely during segregation. Green’s original guide served as a crucial resource for Black travelers during the Jim Crow era, listing businesses, restaurants , gas stations, and lodging where individuals could safely stop without facing discrimination, the National Park Service reports. It remained widely used until the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed “discrimination on the basis of race, color,...
Former NBA players Grant Hill and Chris Webber are looking to bring a WNBA team back to the city where they once played. According to a press release, an ownership group led by Pistons owner Tom Gores has formed and placed a bid to bring the league to Detroit, MI. The state previously had a team between 1998 to 2009, named The Detroit Shock, which had been quite successful, CNBC reports. In fact, the team won three WNBA Championships. However, the franchise no longer represents the city after first moving to Tulsa, OK, and then to Arlington, TX, where it has played as the Dallas Wings since 2015. Now, a group that includes Hill and Webber is hoping to reignite momentum for the city to regain a WNBA team. This marks a full-circle moment for both Hill and Webber as they both played for the Detroit Pistons at different times during their professional careers. “This is an exciting opportunity to welcome the WNBA back to Detroit and bring additional investment and economic activity into...