05 Jun Committing to Partner with a Black Entrepreneur in Residence
I would like to play a role in dismantling the institutionalized and systemic racism we have in the US against BIPOC. I have not actively done so to date. While I have invested in Africa, I have not yet invested in companies started by Black founders here in the US. Now, more than ever, I recognize that this must change.
My colleagues and I have been debating how best to take authentic action in our professional capacity, in a way that generates recurring value for all involved. Tokenism is neither interesting nor helpful.
We decided we will begin by incubating a Black American founder as an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) at our firm. This will be an inaugural program for a new firm I am spinning up (not for Romulus). I can’t say much more about it here, but the new firm’s ethos will echo the values and principles that have driven me in the past while adopting a more modern, forward-thinking edge.
As part of this program, we will:
*Invest $50K on an uncapped SAFE note with a 20% discount to the next round
*Provide office space in Boston once we return to offices
*Invite the EIR to attend our team’s weekly investment meetings, where s/he can gain unique insights into the workings of a VC fund
If you are a Black founder (first time or repeat), we’d love to see the following attributes:
*Engineer/technologist (ideally)
*Interested in building a massive technology-driven (ideally B2B) business in a multibillion dollar industry
*Should not have raised any capital yet beyond an angel round (if at all)
*Have chip on the shoulder ambition to take advantage of accelerated tech innovation and adoption in the coming decade
*Collaborative leader who wants to work with our family
*Can be based anywhere in the US, although ideally willing to move to Boston once the world opens up
If this sounds like you, please consider applying via this Google form. We are open-minded in pursuit of finding the right fit.
As a team, we are committed to promoting and learning from diverse perspectives and ideas as we debate investment opportunities. We are confident that the learnings we gain from a more diverse inner circle will generate massive recurring value. But, most importantly, we want to this role to be aspirational toward something massive. We want to build together.
I look forward to hearing from many of you and working with someone closely. If you are excited about this program, please apply here. If you know someone who might be interested, I hope you’ll share this post with them.