Event Recap: Art + Technology Learning Salon: Deal Flow and Access to Capital | Los Angeles, CA
Reading this event recap of the 2019 Surdna & Crux Learning Salon is like walking into a galactic space of limitless potential full of diverse, talented, bright individuals! The LA Learning Salon on January 30th & 31st was prominently populated with self-determined individuals who understand the importance of creating new capital pipelines for increased equity, ownership, and accessibility for founders of color in new technologies and media. The gift of ancestral self-determination and the beautiful presence of communal support and innate stamina to organize for Black, Latinx, Asian and Native American communities was strongly present.
The convening began with the acknowledgment of the Indigenous lands currently occupied downtown Los Angeles, in which the LA Learning Salon took place. The lack of access to equity in financing for people of color and the barriers they face due to racism, while starting a business was the core discussion for the two days we spent together.
Javier Torres, Director of the Thriving Cultures program at Surdna, opened the two-day convening by highlighting topics that revolved around the Surdna Foundation’s mission to invest in social justice movements like Crux. Javier then introduced the co-founders of Crux, Dafina McMillan and Lauren Ruffin. Crux’s ambition to establish the first platform centered on immersive content from Black creators framed the convening by beginning to outline strategies for new business and investment models. These models seek to build an equitable economic system for people of color to utilize and erase the disparities that diverse entrepreneurs encounter while starting companies. Black entrepreneurs often conceive of technology and innovative ideas faster than some of the leading tech companies in the world, so why do they get turned down from business opportunities at higher rates than white entrepreneurs? Why do diverse founders pay costs much higher to start the same type of businesses that white people start up?
Our first presenter, Melissa Bradley, managing director at 1863 Ventures, helped solidify answers with statistics of the repulsive effect of structural racism on people of color as they founded businesses. Bradley’s advocacy for investment in equity and equality for people of color and other underrepresented humans encourages investors to provide support with non-traditional funds allocated for social change.
Astrid Scholz, CEO of Sphaera, facilitated a presentation of the “Founders Challenge” game prototype which put game players in the shoes of people of different nationalities, genders and economic circumstances. Astrid’s game pushed its players to determine impact investing tips that can help people of color who are starting businesses.
The support for emerging entrepreneurs establishing businesses and creating a shift of power with technology does not stop there. Adam Huttler, founder and CEO of Exponential Creativity Ventures, shared how his business advocates for “Enlightened Funders” to invest in the democratization of media creation through social change and rising technological mediums.
Day One of the LA Learning Salon ended with a dynamic VR field trip to Santa Monica where we were transported into Dreamscape Immersive’s imaginary world of alien zoos, deep blue aquatic adventures and magic. Since XR (extended reality) is still fairly new, a lot of the people who attended the VR field trip were bedazzled with the mix of real and virtual environments, and began to imagine how they can reshape the narrative for storytelling.
As Day Two of the convening opened and we took in the beautiful view from the 14th floor as precipitation fell, we considered whether the universe decided to nurture our righteous growth towards overdue economic equity for underestimated communities. The elements were raging and forward thinkers were accumulating brain power as our speakers and participants sparked more topics about creating new opportunity pipelines in the tech industry for their communities.
Martina Welkhoff, founding partner at the WXR Fund, presented an impactful introduction to Women in XR Fund’s dedication to equal gender representation in the spatial computing field, and how women are dominating the platform from use cases in healthcare to retail. It was amazing to see a clip of WXR Fund’s All-Female Founders Pitch Event of 2018, which was held entirely in VR!
Russell Ladson, CEO of Drop (a company dedicated to immersive computing for a post-smartphone world), also presented at the event. Ladson talked about his phenomenal team’s passion for creating groundbreaking immersive internet searching and browsing platforms. On a global level, Drop are creators of the most downloaded VR titles on the HTC Vive leading headset for the augmented reality and virtual reality users of today.
We closed with speaker Sian Morson, who is the founder of Kollective Mobile and Kollective South. Sian has been on both sides of the table as a founder and investor. Although the event focused on creating new equity economic models, Sian also helped decipher faults that exist in VC.
After two days of assessing new forms of community building, the LA Learning Salon showcased the fundamental laws and innate gifts of people of color for organizing, planning, infinite potential and desire to create constructive communities that do not rely on traditional economic colonialism! As politics and demographics change, economic structures must evolve to create equitable opportunities for people to sustain themselves. Sharing caution against traditional predatory business practices and helping people of color, and other underrepresented humans, leapfrog into new equitable economic systems was central to all of our discussions. We look forward to our second Learning Salon, which will be held in April 2019 in New York City.
