VISIBLE NEWS
Visible Hands is a VC firm that provides exceptional founders from underrepresented backgrounds with the funds, hands-on support, and community they need to thrive at the earliest stages of company building.
Happy Friday, VH Community!Who's ready for the extended weekend? We know we are, especially after another busy (yet exciting) week at VH!This week, we've been counting down the days until our application review time for our Visionaries III Accelerator. Applications are open for only a FEW MORE DAYS, so be sure to use the extra time you have this weekend to submit your application and/or share the link with a founder who you think should be a part of our next cohort before May 29th!Additionally, our BK-XL Accelerator is approaching its end-of-program Demo Day in NYC, where our cohort of 12 exceptional founders will pitch their groundbreaking companies. This day will also feature a fireside chat with Clara Wu Tsai and our special guest, Andy Weissman, from Union Square Ventures! Learn more and RSVP here.As we prepare for the end of some programs and the beginning of new ones, we've been reminding ourselves to prioritize time for rest and reflection among the noise. We encourage you to take this extended weekend to do that for yourselves as well. Be well,The Visible Hands Team
VH ANNOUNCEMENTS
Shoutout to VH Product Manager Yulkendy Valdez (pictured above) on her recent feature by Authority Magazine!
ICYMI: Last week we announced our new VHBOS inaugural cohort and the announcement was highlighted in the Bostinno Newsletter! Read more about the new cohort here.
VH Co-Founder & General Partner Daniel Acheampong will be a virtual panelist on June 13th from 6-7pm ET for ADL's Equity in Equities Webinar on improving diversity and inclusion on Wall Street - learn more and register here!
Check out VH Investor Associate, Darrel Frater's Office Hours on Twitter Spaces every Friday from 1 pm - 3 pm EST where he creates a safe space for founders to pitch VCs and discuss challenges they are facing in the business.
VISIONARY UPDATES
Founder Updates, Asks, and Wins:
Congratulations to Visionaries I Founder Auja Little and VHNYC I Fellow Ayomi Samaraweera of Canopy on being selected for Harlem Capital's Launchpad!
Congratulations to Visionaries II Founder Shannon Morales of Tribaja on interviewing President of AnitaB.org, Brenda Darden Wilkerson at the recent Black Women Talk Tech Roadmap to Billions event!
Congratulations to Visionaries II Founder Artin Perse of Levl on being featured on CBS for Mental Health Awareness month!
Congratulations to Visionaries I Founder Irene Li of Prepshift and Mei Mei Dumplings on her recent Boston Globe Media coverage!
Congratulations to VHLX I Fellow Victor Ocando of Adapt the Game and Visionaries I Founder Ashton Keys of Athlytic for both being recently featured in Ladderworks' Spiffy Blog!
Congratulations to VHBOS I Fellow Samantha Johnson of Tatum Robotics for recently hosting U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren to chat about the newest innovations in robotics!
Congratulations to Visionaries I Founder Noelle Acosta of Noula Health who will be speaking on a panel about celebrating the Renaissance of Women in Tech for Founders, Inc. during SF Techweek! Join Noelle on May 31st by RSVP-ing here!
Congratulations to BK-XLl Founder Sergio Villansenor of Drooler on being invited to be on "The Pitch Show" on June 9th !
WHAT WE HAVE OUR EYES ON
➕ Founder funding, community resources, and events:
Women Founders Network pitch competition offers valuable mentoring, coaching and in-kind sponsorships, as well as cash investment potential from investors that attend the Fast Pitch event and an ongoing support network of successful businesswomen committed to building the female entrepreneur ecosystem. Learn more about their upcoming pitch competition and apply here by May 31st.
SaaStock is a conference for SaaS founders, investors, and ecosystem partners making its US debut in Austin May 31st-June 2nd. SaaStock is generously comping tickets for us (a $1,400 value)! You can register here.
Join LGBT+ VC on June 1st for a family-friendly celebration and talk on how mom-VCs support their trans children, how sons honor their late lesbian moms, and how chosen families power LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurship. Learn more and register here!
Lighthouse Labs is a nationally recognized accelerator based in Richmond, VA looking for high-tech, high-growth, early-stage, post-MVP companies raising a pre-seed or seed investment rounds. Learn more and apply here by June 5th.
Join the Black & Brown VCs and Founders brunch on June 5th in gathering brilliant Black & Brown funders and founders in beautiful West Hollywood. Socialize with investors and builders across all industries and startup stages from AI, Consumer, Fintech, Spacetech, CPG, Climate Tech and more. Learn more and RSVP here.
Are you looking for capital to grow your business? If so, join Mogul Millennial and Accion Opportunity Fund on June 6th to learn how working capital loans can help you scale. Learn more and RSVP here.
Join Techstars for an exclusive 3-part Fundraising Series, designed to give you the knowledge and tools you need to successfully raise capital for your early stage startup. Led by industry experts, this series will provide you with insider tips on how to prepare for your next investor meeting, from crafting the perfect pitch to what to include in your investor pitch deck. The first session is on June 6th at 2pm MT - learn more and register here.
Applications are now open for a new 13-week accelerator starting this September in New York: Techstars Economic Mobility Powered by Samvid Ventures. Learn more and apply here by June 7th.
Applications are now open for Bank of America's Breakthrough Lab, a fintech accelerator program designed for founders. Participants receive expert advice, mentorship and access to potential investors and providers of capital. Learn more and apply here by June 8th.
Looking ahead to Pride Month, StartOut's 4th Annual StartOut Equity Summit is taking place virtually on June 15th, where you can listen, learn, and engage with diverse industry leaders in a day-long conversation focused on equity. Learn more and register here.
Applications are open for Pitch HearstLabU, a startup pitch competition exclusively for university-enrolled & recently-graduated women. The winner of Pitch HearstLabU will become an automatic finalist in our $100K pitch event in the fall. Learn more and apply here by June 17th.
Calling all Chicago-based founders! Forum Ventures is hosting a LIVE pitch competition at TechNexus Venture Collaborative on June 21st for the chance to win $100K and admission to their Accelerator. Learn more and register to attend here, and submit your deck here for a chance to pitch!
43North is a startup accelerator sponsored by Empire State Development that invests $5M annually into seed-stage startups. Their 2023 application is now open - learn more and apply here by June 23rd.
StartOut Growth Lab is a startup accelerator that offers top-quality mentoring, education, and networking opportunities for companies that are founded or co-founded by LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs. Applications are open now - learn more and apply here by June 30th.
Applications are open and rolling for the Forum Ventures B2B SaaS Accelerator, a high-touch program for early-stage founders designed to get you to the next stage. Learn more and apply here.
🌎 Ecosystem Spotlights:
Congratulations to our friend and Board Advisor Greg Gottesman, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Pioneer Square Labs, on PSL's recent announcement of their $20M Studio III!
digitalundivided and Cosmopolitan have partnered to recognize and celebrate women in the startup space! Become a New C-Suite Honoree - the annual initiative spotlighting a top 10 list of game-changing businesses with women of color entrepreneurs. Learn more and apply here by May 28th!
Porte, NYC's Modern Retail Conference, is set to take place on June 3rd in New York City. Porte 2023 is a one-of-a-kind conference that brings together over 300+ brands, buyers, thought leaders, and retailers to forge new relationships and discuss the latest trends in the retail industry. Learn more and register here.
HubSpot for Startups and Hubspot Ventures have joined forces to launch the "Million Dollar Pitch" competition. Six lucky startups will be selected to fly out on an all-expenses-paid trip to INBOUND, where they'll have the opportunity to pitch to an all-star panel of judges - learn more and apply here by June 9th!
Calling all Black and LatinX founders across Los Angeles County! Applications are now live for the third year of the PledgeLA Founders Fund in partnership with Grid110. The 20 selected companies will each receive $25K in non-dilutive capital from PledgeLA and go through Grid110's 3-month accelerator program. Learn more and apply here by June 11th.
Venture Lane has opened applications for its next startup accelerator that kicks off in September - offering up to $100K investments and support on sales and go-to-maket. Learn more and apply here by July 14th.
💼 Featured Jobs:
Visionaries I Team Candoor has a crowdsourced job board where folks hiring can share roles with Candoor advisees - check out the board here!
VHNYC I Fellowship Team ConConnect is looking for a Head of Engineering. Learn more and apply for the role here.
Our friends at Morgan Stanley are currently hiring an Associate for Morgan Stanley Inclusive Ventures Group (In-House Start-Up Accelerator.) Learn more about the role and apply here.
Primary VC is on the lookout for a talented Market Development Manager to join its Impact team and scale its expanding network of healthcare, financial services, and general industry executives. Learn more and apply here.
Our friends over at Liberty Mutual are hiring for multiple innovation-related positions - learn more about the available roles and apply here!
Visionaries I Team Hearth Display is currently hiring for a Marketing Manager! Learn more and apply for the role here.
BK-XL l Team HABIT is looking to hire a creative video and strategy intern for the summer! To apply, send your resume and same video content here.
Slauson & Co. is growing and looking to add an Investment Associate to their team. Learn more and apply.
🧑🏽💻 What we are watching, reading, or listening to:
Watching: Lessons From Losing My Mind, TED Conferences
Reading: Online Communities: The Why, The What, and The Future, by Visionaries II Founder Tosin Sonuyi
Stopped scrolling for: What Startups Paid Their First 5 Hires in Equity in 2022
If you'd like your founder resource or event/conference to be featured in our weekly newsletter, shoot us a message at kerry@visiblehands.vc
"We celebrate the bold, the curious, and the irrational. We applaud those with big dreams, and who choose the harder, riskier path in relentless pursuit of pushing forward what is possible."
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