📢 HCP Newsletter: “Stay hungry. Stay paranoid. Have a lot of fun.” – June 2024
Harlem Capital’s monthly recap on our portfolio companies, events & beyond! 🏎️💨
The Headlines 🗞️
🗽 Live from New York… it’s Harlem Homecoming!
We hosted our fourth annual Harlem Capital Homecoming founder summit in New York City! This is the first time we hosted it in NYC, where Harlem Capital was founded in 2015. This year’s theme was Staying the Course, Refining Our Focus.
A blend of networking and tactical programming, we had sessions on benchmarking, executive coaching, and go-to-market strategies with industry leaders. The day culminated in a fireside chat with the inimitable Tope Awotona, founder and CEO of Calendly.
When asked for parting words of wisdom, he responded: “Stay hungry. Stay paranoid. Have a lot of fun.” Now that’s a mantra to live by.
Harlem Homecoming has become a cornerstone of our firm. As a fund that puts community at the center of everything we do, we feel privileged to catalyze meaningful relationships for our portfolio. We know the entrepreneurial journey can be isolating, and this is a chance for our founders to feel a little less alone.
📣 HCP Annual General Meeting
A one-two punch! We hosted our Annual General Meeting where we updated our LPs on our fund’s performance, market perspectives, and our strategy on how we’ll continue to change the face of entrepreneurship.
Preparing for AGM always gives the HCP team moments to reflect on how far Harlem Capital has come since its inception. As our investments continue to grow, so do our insights and network. Partner Gabby Cazeau shared her incredible insights from this month’s events here.
✊🏾✊🏽✊🏼 Juneteenth: Reflection and a Call to Action
While Juneteenth is a designated day to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States and reflect on society’s progress toward racial equity, we also reflect on the progress that needs to be made to adequately uplift and empower the Black community.
Every day the Harlem Capital Team reflects on our guiding mission: to invest in 1,000 diverse founders over 20 years.
🌈 Happy Pride Month!
This month, we celebrate our LGBTQ+ leaders who fought for equality and human rights. Harlem Capital is proud to champion our LGBTQ+ founders, investors, and colleagues pioneering in venture capital. A special shoutout to HCP’s own Principal Nicole DeTommaso.
Representation matters and we are dedicated to creating spaces for people to bring their full selves to work with pride and ease.
Portfolio News 🏆
✅ TestParty: The Spell Check for Accessible Code!
We are thrilled to introduce TestParty, an AI-enabled digital accessibility compliance platform.
TestParty supports customers in complying with digital accessibility regulations, avoiding financial and reputational costs. We are proud to have led the company's $4M seed round with the Urban Innovation Fund.
This is also the first HCP investment founded by one of our interns, Michael Bervell. Congratulations to Michael and co-founder Jason Tan – we look forward to growing with you. Read the TechCrunch feature here and read more about our investment here.
📦 Cool Stuf!
Congratulations to Katharine Lau, Co-founder and CEO of Stuf Storage, for receiving the Connect CRE’s New York & Tri-State 2024 Next Generation Award. Stuf Storage is revolutionizing the self-storage industry by using unused spaces in corporate buildings as convenient storage solutions. Read more about Kat and her impact here.
🌍 Global Impact: Pariti x Nvidia
Pariti is collaborating with Nvidia to train 2,000 tech developers in Africa on artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science. As engineers complete their training, they will be placed in jobs using Pariti’s platform and community. Watch CEO Yacob Berhane’s interview with CNBC here.
Interested in working at one of the startups in our portfolio? 💻
Search job openings across the Harlem Capital network here!
Harlem Capital Related 🚀
🎉 The Roaring 20th Class: HCP’s Summer Interns
We’re excited to welcome our Summer 2024 interns: Reade Rossman, Alivia Jiang, Dimitri Henry, Megha Agarwal, Amir Williams, and Valeria Vinas. This class is also joined by a returning fellow, Nikolas Ortega.
2024 marks our 7th year of the intern program and we continue to be impressed with the volume of interest and talent in the VC community. Our interns become part of the HCP team for 10 weeks and get experience diligencing deals, analyzing industry trends, and leading key projects that contribute to the diverse ecosystem.
Learn more about Harlem Capital’s internship program and our summer cohort here.
Our Fall 2024 internship is live! Apply by July 2.
🚨 Jobs in VC 🧑🏾💻
Venture Capital Careers job board
Jobs at HCP portfolio companies: harlem.capital/jobs
Mark Your Calendars – Save These Dates! 📅
🖊️ Venture Atlanta Startup Pitch Competition – Apply by August 2nd
Finalists will have the opportunity to pitch their startup live to some of the Southeast’s most active funds for their chance at a $500K investment! Finalists will also receive mentorship and invitations to investor dinners during the Venture Atlanta Conference.
🖊️ Inside Summit 2024 – July 17th, 2024 in NYC
The Inside Summit by The Room Podcast brings founders, funders, and operators together in an intimate setting to share candid conversations and build strong connections. Programming includes founder-funder matching and live podcast recordings!
Helpful Resources 💯
BCV x Headline 2024 Top 50 Vertical SaaS Startups 📈
50 startups making traction in large Vertical SaaS markets
Bessemer Venture Partners’ Roadmap: AI Infrastructure 💻
Insights on the next generation of infrastructure investing — new infrastructure tools purpose-built for enterprises leveraging AI in their platforms
TxO is launching a $50,000 grant program for nonprofits to support skill development and job placement for individuals with limited exposure (and great interest in) the technology and startup ecosystem. Interested nonprofits should apply by July 19.