Last Juneteenth the Slauson & Co. team sent out an email. As was suggested in this Wall Street Journal article published this morning, it changed the trajectory of our entire firm, which at the time was called On Purpose Ventures (OPV). It is worth elaborating on my personal circumstances for…

PledgeLA recently created the Fund For South LA Founders, which was in direct response to racial and economic inequities that came to the forefront of the national conversation in 2020. A project of AnnenbergTech, the LA Latino Chamber of Commerce, SLATE-Z, and other community partners, the fund is designed to…

As a Black man in venture capital, the last few months have been eye opening. The national conversations about social justice led to an increased awareness of the challenges faced by underrepresented founders and funders in our industry. People and organizations have since stepped up to create pathways to invest…

My introduction to venture capital came a little over a decade ago by way of a few active investors who were regularly blogging. Though at the time I didn’t know these investors personally, it’s safe to say their blogs were essential to me breaking into the industry. That’s where I…

What happens when you put out a call for innovative entrepreneurs in South Los Angeles? Grid110 usually accepts between 15 and 20 Los Angeles based companies for each cohort. But since South LA represents only 8% of LA’s population, we questioned whether we would be able to fill a cohort…

Cities and states across the country have begun to issue guidance on reopening businesses. While this is a major step toward restoring local economies, it is difficult to imagine things going back to the way they used to be before Covid-19. Our personal and professional habits are evolving as we…

Last April, I wrote about what Nipsey Hussle meant to his community just after his passing. I concluded by saying he “doubled down on investing in his community because he knew it would inspire others to do the same. It worked. I hope to do the same.” Since then I…

In October of 2009, exactly 10 years ago, Mark Zuckerberg introduced the world to Facebook’s motto, “move fast and break things.” It was a breakout year for a startup with unprecedented growth, so the entire tech industry was paying close attention. As a result, “move fast and break things” was…

It has been a rough couple weeks since the City of Los Angeles was rocked by the death of Nipsey Hussle. It hit me hard and I haven’t stopped thinking or talking about Nip since last Sunday’s news. Since his passing, most media coverage eulogized him as an entertainer who…