The DMZ awards $35,000 to Black-led startups Blue Guardian, Gia Health, Scooli
Summary
The recipients are Blue Guardian, Gia Health, and Scooli.A pitch competition was held at the summit, where seven Black-founded startups pitched their companies for the chance to secure funding.Blue Guardian, which secured the top prize of $20,000, uses AI to provide an early detection tool for mental health support. It also won the community choice award, taking home an additional $2,500.In second place was Gia Health, who received $10,000. The Black Innovation Program also comprises a launchpad, a free skills-development platform for aspiring tech entrepreneurs.The DMZ offers special benefits to Black-led startups across its pre-incubator and incubator, on top of what all of its resident founders can receive. This includes providing a $5,000 grant to companies with a Black founder in its pre-incubator program, among other support.When asked why it downsized the total amount of grants for the Black Innovation Summit this year, a spokesperson for the DMZ said it plans to provide additional funding to Black-led startups at pitch events later this year. The DMZ said this change is in response to changing market conditions in the tech landscape and allow us to ensure we remain in touch with founders current needs.The DMZ said it will continue to host a competition for founders to pitch to a handpicked group of investors and judges for prizes, which it said would be more curated, or carefully selected.Additionally, the DMZ will have a dedicated space at the Collision conference this year, with a startup showcase stage, networking sessions, and other events to engage with the startup community.