GoodTech Ventures’ Post

We're thrilled to announce that 12 ventures have been selected as the first cohort to participate in the GoodTech Ventures #Accelerator – a groundbreaking initiative aimed at fostering tech innovation across social and public services. We warmly welcome all the ventures joining us on this accelerator programme. Your innovative solutions and drive for social impact are what make this initiative so promising. 🟣 A-dapt - A-dapt’s mission is to use emotion AI to make a significant impact on education and training, by better understanding and managing emotional states in learners, to improve outcomes. 🟣 Bloume Health - Bloume provides digital care to help people manage genito-pelvic pain. 🟣 Circe Health - Circe Health is a tech platform designed as a modern guide to holistic, complementary healthcare. Circe aims to raise the bar for the industry and widen access to personalised care. 🟣 Cogs AI - Cogs is an autistic-led technology company building software for the neurodivergent community. Their mobile application helps neurodivergent people understand their diagnosis and work through day-to-day situations. 🟣 Frontier Academy - Frontier is on a mission to bring education into the age of AI and democratise access to world-class education. 🟣 Good With - Good With is an award-winning financial wellbeing app, built by psychologists and proven to alleviate financial stress and anxiety. 🟣 In Reality Ltd - In Reality provides training systems (e.g. desktop and Virtual Reality (VR) simulators) to regulated industries, including rail, transportation, aerospace and energy. 🟣 Interrobang - Interrobang is a tech-for-good organisation working at the intersection of research, design and technology to make our public services work better and our communities more resilient. 🟣 Alix - Alix enables organisations to support their customers with their personal finances through intuitive, easy-to-use tooling that meets common financial challenges. 🟣 Scooter - Scooter is a mobile app that empowers social care workers to provide high-quality care, delivered by the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE). 🟣 SuperFi - The SuperFi app helps people to stay on top of their bills and out of problem debt. 🟣 Taught by Humans - Taught by Humans helps everyone become AI & Data Confident. They offer AI & data education for companies and individuals. We can't wait to see the incredible transformations your projects will bring to social and public services! The GoodTech Ventures Accelerator programme - delivered by Catch22 in partnership with #SocialTechTrust and Unity Ventures with funding and support from Ufi VocTech Trust, Microsoft and the UK government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund - is set to revolutionise how we address entrenched social challenges through technology. https://lnkd.in/eXHc5mX8

Are startup accelerators worth it? Many will tell you no — and often for good reason. But they aren’t all made equally and shouldn’t be treated like it. On Wednesday, I shared Leantime (Techstars '23) at the Perkins School for the Blind — as part of our Demo Day for the Remarkable Tech 2024 US Accelerator. Here’s what Remarkable does differently: 1. Disability Tech Focus They pick companies that they truly believe will make the world a more accessible, equitable, and sustainable place. They take the standard question of, “Can this be a big market?” and add to it: AND can it truly impact millions of lives? 2. They walk the talk They model what they are looking for and by modeling it, set the bar in us (the founders). This creates an amplification of what we already believed, hope, and see in the world. 3. Accessibility requires personalization Disabled, diverse, all ages, all demographics… they take a holistic approach to founder needs. And honestly, with all the work that goes into an accelerator, the extra care that goes in to considering all the intersectionalities is inspiring. 4. Growth (and progress) is incremental before it’s accelerated. But it doesn’t always look like it and as a founder, you’re always sitting way too close to sometimes see it. We set the accomplishment bar for the program pretty high for ourselves. The reality, though, is that achieving is often not the startup problem — it’s clarity, focus, direction. Acceleration is clarity. Now with a proprietary model and a patent pending approach to work management, that path forward will stay accelerated beyond the program. I truly believe, though, that clarity gets clearer and quicker when it comes alongside inclusion, equity, accessibility and in consideration of the whole person (psychological safety, anyone?). If you are building in this space, this IS an accelerator to consider. Shout outs: Thanks for not just raising the bar — but for also inspiring new heights for that bar. Molly Lazarus (Levitt) Samuel (Sam) Lazarus Thane Hunt Laura Andersen And the other incredible founders and startups who journeyed the last 16 weeks with us. Pierre Paul and the team at We Hear You, Inc Julie Lineberger and team at WheelPad L3C Pascal Clarysse and crew at Big Karma And to all the mentors, advisors, supporters and more that have joined us through the program and on Wednesday. #startup #accelerators #fundraising #growth #business

to be anti venture capital is to be inherently anti ambition. because the world’s most valuable tech companies (which are/were the most ambitious tech companies at least at the time of founding, too) are all VC backed. Yes you can take a non VC path and make something great and ambitious, but that doesn’t justify calling out and bringing down those who do take the VC route. I think this whole polarising paradigm of VC backed vs bootstrapped that is going on is a distraction and I cringe every time it comes up. Financing isn’t something to be ideological about. It’s important to think in first principles when it comes to how much money a company needs and what’s the shortest legal and ethical path to acquiring it. To find that, it’s important to understand what team does the company need and how much does the team need. The thing I dislike the most about this VC vs no VC paradigm is that it tries to equalise all founders and the height of their competence and ambition. It goes on to shame ideas that are harder to execute and therefore more resource intensive, and assumes anyone working on something hard is anti scrappiness and anti lean startup. Peter Thiel’s talk on YC’s How to Start a Startup (titled “competition is for losers”) is a great theoretical explanation of why VC matters. If you’re a founder or VC or startup employee and you haven’t watched it please do, and watch it multiple times. I think a startup’s chance of failure is higher if you build in energy, education, healthcare, finance and other hard segments that require more than just software adoption. The highest leverage thing I’ve done as a founder was to raise venture capital on problem definition and me/problem fit, pre solution and pre product. Hard problems usually have more than one solution, and of all the solutions, few make great products, and of the few great product options, not all scale. To go deep and broad in that search space to find the optimal path to usefulness, scale and value generation and capture, it takes time. It is nothing but rigor to wanna buy time to find the optimal path, and anyone who shames founders for this is dismissive of the importance of rigor and elitism. I understand my problem space better than anyone in my industry, and since day 1 i’ve known i must buy time to iterate on as many solutions as possible (one at a time) until we find product market fit. In the hindsight i think i could’ve definitely managed the iteration process better to learn faster a company but overall im content/grateful that we’ve made it far enough to obsess over MRR daily. Defining a starting point that makes money that leads you to the bigger vision is a non-trivial task that many anti-VC gurus haven’t gone thru and therefore can’t empathize with. My journey is ongoing. learning in public. If this is refreshing to hear then you should sign up for LearningLoop.com & increase the quality and rigor of conversations you’re exposed to.

🚀 AfriMind: Empowering African Women’s Mental Well-being 🚀 At AfriMind, our mission is clear and impactful: to make culturally relevant mental health support accessible to African women. As we continue to evolve, we’re excited about the strides we’re making to refine our platform and better serve our community. Our recent progress is driven by a deep commitment to understanding the unique challenges faced by African women, developing tools that resonate and make a real difference. We’re more motivated than ever to push forward, creating a space where mental well-being is prioritized and accessible, regardless of circumstances or technological limitations. This is just the beginning, and we can’t wait to share more updates as we continue this journey. Together, we’re building something powerful—something that has the potential to transform lives. 💡 We’d love to hear your thoughts on mental health, innovation, and how technology can create meaningful change. Your insights and support are invaluable to us. 💡 #MentalHealth #TechForGood #Innovation #AfriMind #Wellness #EmpoweringWomen

Over the course of a decade, just 3.9% of $1.2 billion has gone to student-led startups with a team of women founders. Mixed-gender startups received 1.8% of funding. The rest – 94.3% – went to all-male founders. According to figures from the State of Australian Start-up Funding Report, startups founded by women secured just 4% of the $3.5 billion in startup funding in Australia, with all-male teams taking the vast majority of the 413 investment deals done. https://lnkd.in/ga4qHyKa

Excited to be a mentor for Techstars Tech Central Sydney Accelerator for the second year in a row. I’m pleased to be involved with this group -  aptly named the ‘dazzling dozen’ (good work on that alliteration, Simon Thomsen), the most diverse group ever seen in a generalist accelerator in Australia. I’m a big fan of the Techstars ethos, and the work of 🍇 Kirstin Hunter, who is a huge advocate for diverse founders - so this cohort is a great reflection of that! I’ll be assisting in a high-performance coach capacity. On the mentor orientation call, we were all impressed with the founders and ideas, so I can’t wait to get started and add value. So for those following at home who are curious, here are the 12 startups in the 2024 Techstars Sydney accelerator program: Canopy (Co-founders: 🍇🌴 Sam Garven and 🍇🌴 Emma Earley), an AI-enabled misconduct and psychosocial safety reporting platform. Dispute Buddy (Jenny Rudd), which creates searchable timelines of texts and messages to resolve legal disputes quickly. Earthletica Activewear, an Australian-designed activewear utilising cutting edge sustainable materials and practices. Female Startup Club (Doone Roisin!!!), which connects female entrepreneurs with the training and resources they need to build their businesses. Gether (Claire Waring and co), an AI-assistant that frees working parents from their mental load. Heatseeker, an AI-enabled platform to help companies grow through quick and easy market tests. Jaimee (Sreyna Rath), an AI companion for women to assist with stress management, confidence building and relationships. NEVAM CX (Brittany Fox), which empowers brands to perfect their customer experience across every channel. OD-AI Pty Ltd (Mikhara Ramsing and Tiffany Guan), which supports organisations to implement the policies, processes and training to create best practice compliance. Shutterspeed (Henry Collinson) is an automatic time/cost tracker and business assistant to make content creation more efficient and profitable. Understanding Zoe (Laetitia Andrac), which supports parents and carers of neurodivergent children to apply therapist recommendations at home, school and beyond. Visuo (Lap-Tin Tsun), which delivers AI powered personalised video experiences to enable brands to drive better customer acquisition, loyalty and retention. Which one piques your interest? Would love to know! 👇 Many thanks to the masterminds behind all the operations: Gwen Masonsong 🪴 and Teala Stephens!

Here's a list of VCs that prioritize investing in underrepresented founders. Are there any I'm missing? If so, add them in the comment section so I can expand the list. If you'd like a downloadable version of the list, comment "Fundraising" and I'll send it over! Musa Capital: A B2B pre-seed/seed VC fund focused on investing in teams with at least one black founder within the high-growth markets of #Enterprise #SaaS, #Healthtech, #Fintech and #TMT. Backstage Capital: This VC firm is focused on investing in startups founded by underrepresented founders, including #women, people of color, and members of the #LGBTQ+ community. Harlem Capital: Harlem Capital is a diversity-focused VC firm that invests in early-stage #startups founded by women and people of color. Precursor Ventures: Precursor Ventures is an early-stage VC firm that invests in startups founded by #underrepresented founders, including women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs. Kapor Capital: Kapor Capital is a social impact-focused VC firm that invests in early-stage startups founded by underrepresented founders, including women and people of color. Cross Culture Ventures: Cross Culture Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups led by underrepresented founders, including those from diverse cultural backgrounds. Female Founders Fund: Female Founders Fund is a VC firm that invests in early-stage startups founded by women, with a focus on #technology companies. BBG Ventures: BBG Ventures is a seed-stage VC firm that invests in startups founded by women, with a focus on #consumer products and services. Lightship Capital: Lightship Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in startups founded by underrepresented founders, with a focus on companies located in the #Midwest and #Southeast regions of the United States. MaC Venture Capital: MaC Venture Capital is a diverse-led #VC firm that invests in early-stage startups founded by underrepresented founders, including people of color, women, and LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs. Plexo Capital: Plexo Capital is a VC firm that invests in early-stage startups founded by underrepresented founders. LvlUp Ventures: A next-generation venture fund, focused on finding & supporting talented founding teams of mature seed companies and helping them reach the next level. LvlUp invests in EVERYONE, regardless of race, gender, or ethnicity. M13: M13 is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups founded by underrepresented founders. Chingona Ventures: Chingona Ventures is a VC firm that invests in early-stage startups founded by women and underrepresented entrepreneurs, with a focus on companies in the technology and #healthcare sectors. Hustle Fund: Hustle Fund is a VC firm that invests in early-stage startups founded by underrepresented founders, with a focus on companies in the technology and consumer sectors.

Product development isn't just about creating new features, it's about fostering a sense of community and making a lasting impact for the greater good. Uniqueness in product offerings fuels community engagement, so whether you're a startup or an established brand, focus on what sets you apart. Be bold, be different, and watch your community flourish. #ProductDevelopment #CommunityImpact #Uniqueness #CommunityEngagement #Startup #EstablishedBrand

Top 10 funding rounds of the week: ⚫ Fintech ⚫ 🔶 1. Zūm Rails, a platform facilitating various types of payments, such as bank transfers and credit card transactions, raised a $7.8 million Series A round. Investors: Arthur Ventures Founded by: marc milewski ⚫ Health ⚫ 🔶 2. Tuned, a telehealth platform offering hearing care support ranging from prevention to intervention, raised a $3.2 million seed extension round. Investors: Unum Group, Distributed Ventures Founded by: Danny Aronson, Ofer Raz, Kate McGinley 🔶 3. Baseimmune, a startup using AI to design advanced vaccines to prevent infectious diseases, raised an $11.3 million Series A round. Investors: MSD Global Health Innovation Fund, IQ Capital, Hoxton Ventures, Creator Fund, Beast Ventures, Maki.vc Founded by: Ariane C. Gomes, Joshua Blight, phillip kemlo 🔶 4. FamilyWell Health, a tech-enabled behavioral health company, raised $4.3M in seed funding. Investors: .406 Ventures Founded by: Jessica (Schiffman) Gaulton MD, MPH 🔶 5. Sorella Care, a startup focused on improving women’s health, has secured €5M in seed funding. Investors: blisce/, Vorwerk Ventures Founded by: Clémence Lejeune, Jeanne Theuret, Youssef Benhaddou ⚫ Bioplastics ⚫ 🔶 6. Sway, a startup that makes packaging products from seaweed as an eco-friendly alternative to plastic, raised a $5 million seed round. Investors: Third Nature Investments, The Helm, Alante Capital, BAM Ventures, Superorganism Founded by: Julia Marsh ⚫ Security ⚫ 🔶 7. Prowler, a startup that offers automated tools for identifying security gaps and compliance issues, aiming to simplify cloud security management, raised a $6 million seed round. Investors: Decibel VC Founded by: Casey Rosenthal, Toni de la Fuente ⚫ Apps ⚫ 🔶 8. Lapse, a startup whose photo-sharing app attempts to mimic the delayed gratification of an old-fashioned disposable camera, raised a $30 million Series A round. Investors: Greylock, DST Global Partners, GV, Octopus Ventures, SpeedInvest Founded by: Dan Silvertown 🔶 9. KLIQ, a startup whose platform enables creators to launch their own-branded apps, raised a $1.5 million pre-seed round. Investors: Serena Ventures Founded by: Ben Camara ⚫ AI ⚫ 🔶 10. Enkrypt AI, a startup that is developing a "control layer" for the safe use of generative AI, raised a $2.4 million seed round. Investors: Boldcap, Berkeley SkyDeck, Kubera VC, Arka VC, Veredas Partners, Builders Fund Founded by: Sahil Agarwal, Prashanth Harshangi 👏 Huge congrats to all these startups on their successful funding rounds! ⚜⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ PS: If you're new here, I'm Ivelina, content lead at doola and VC writer at GoingVC. Follow me for weekly startup highlights and some marketing hacks. #startups #funding #venturecapital

Chicago founders, it's no secret early-stage raising here is difficult. Below is my annotated list of Chicago/Midwest angel groups that can help you. 👇 TechRise Chicago $25-50k in weekly pitch competitions, multiple industries The 81 Collection Focus on “boring trades, hard work, unpleasant spaces, and structural inequity” Chicago Early Growth Ventures Seed-stage with a Chicago preference, industry agnostic Chicago Booth Angels Network U of C affiliation not required, industry agnostic The Josephine Collective Women-led, $10-100k check sizes, looks at deals on a rolling basis, less than 3 week process Chicago Angels Targets companies raising between $500k and $3 million, reviews 3 companies per month, industry agnostic CIC Angels National with a Chicago preference, only focuses on industries that their members have expertise in Cornerstone Angels Greater Midwest preference, reviews 2-3 companies every 2 months Harvard Business School Angels & Entrepreneurship Council Chicago Midwest preference, seed and early-stage focus, Harvard affiliation not required, quarterly application deadlines Heartland Angels Seed and early-stage focus, industry agnostic IrishAngels Focus on pre-seed and seed stage companies raising $1-3 million, $150k minimum check size, avg is $400k, focus on software, consumer products, and medical devices, reviews 3-4 companies quarterly VITALIZE Venture Capital $50-100k checks, B2B and B2B2C companies in WorkTech, 30-60 days process, reviews 1-2 companies each month MD Angels Physician-based, focus on medtech & healthcare (medical devices, diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, biotech, and digital health) Illini Angels @ Illinois Ventures Industry agnostic, founder/leadership team must have ties to 1 of the 3 University of Illinois campuses, or use tech licensed from U of I, or involved with the U of I entrepreneurial ecosystem in some other way Hustle Fund “We invest in hilariously early startups,” $50k check size, two 30-60 minute phone calls followed by a 48 hour assessment period West Suburban Angels Inc. Early-stage focus, industry agnostic Hyde Park Angels Seed, Series A with an Illinois/Midwest focus, basically industry agnostic Fifth Star Funds Focus on F&F/pre-seed rounds for Black tech founders, MVP not required, co-founder must be Black or have faced material barriers to accessing capital due to discrimination, HQ in Chicago, invests $25k SAFE Chicago Media Angels Focus on filmmakers creating feature films, television series, or new media, $50k to $1 million investments DyMynd Angels Women-led group focusing on female-led startups in Chicago/Midwest IU Ventures Seed and Series A focus, must have an IU affiliation, reviews 10-15 companies per month, industry agnostic LeapYear LongJump Honors Fund DM me if you're an angel specifically interested in connecting with great founders building in the education & social impact space. #angelinvesting #chicagotech #startups #vc #founders #tech