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A venture capital firm supporting Black tech companies has closed its second fund. BKR Capital Led by Managing Partner Lise Birikundavyi, alongside co-founder Isaac Olowolafe, Toronto-based BKR Capital invests in technology or technology-enabled startups. According to the firm’s website, they target companies with diverse teams that have at least one Black founder and are at the pre-seed to seed stage. The firm primarily focuses on companies based in Canada, though up to 10% of its portfolio may be global. “We need to keep innovation at home,” Birikundavyi explained, according to The Globe and Mail. “We all want a Canada that is strong economically – where our children can grow up and have everything they need.” Fund II Details BKR Capital has raised $20 million for its second fund, aiming to reach $50 million by the end of 2026, per The Globe and Mail. The raise was supported by Royal Bank of Canada, Business Development Bank of Canada, Export Development Canada, and others,...
If you don’t hear from 50 Cent, just know he’s likely closing in on a business deal. His latest venture is an entertainment hub. Curtis “ 50 Cent ” Jackson has inked a $100 million deal alongside Planet Hollywood Founder and CEO Robert Earl to launch PH Live, according to a press release. The hub will be located at Planet Hollywood Times Square in New York City and will feature LED technology, live music, film and television premiere parties, private events, live sporting event simulcasts, VIP experiences, and corporate gatherings, among other offerings. “When I get quiet I’m working, I’m working on it 😆💰PH live baby! @50centaction @phlivenyc ,” 50 Cent wrote on Instagram. View this post on Instagram A post shared by 50 Cent (@50cent) The partnership also marks 50 Cent’s first major restaurant-entertainment partnership, the press release notes. Guests can expect to dine at the location, with menu items including sweet chili shrimp with mashed potatoes, sliced steak paired with...
Lil Wayne doesn’t believe AI can take his throne. Does the technology have the ability to produce a record such as “A Milli” on its own strength? He says, not at the moment, and while the rapper does appreciate AI, he also feels confident that the technology can’t surpass his talent. “I love it. I love that AI is what it is. I love to be able to stand right next to whoever AI is, he, she, they, whatever, or whatever AI is, stand right next to them and I’m still better,” Lil Wayne said on the “Not Just Football with Cam Heyward” podcast. He also shared that he first became exposed to AI through a friend who had concerns about how it could generate a verse in the likeness of an artist. So, Lil Wayne tested it out himself and said he has tried it on different occasions. One of the examples he provided was Proto, which is the patented creator of hologram devices , according to a press release . It creates interactive experiences through its conversational AI avatars, which feature...
Aasiyah Abdulsalam is leveraging robotics to solve pain points in the wig industry. The London native, raised in Ireland by parents from Nigeria, developed scalp psoriasis at 12 years old, according to Inc. She began wearing wigs because she was losing hair “ excessively, ” she said. By default, she became acquainted with hair brokers, stylists, and specialty product manufacturers. They were useful when she was creating her own wigs or getting them installed, the outlet notes. When she became a student at the University of Leicester, her fascination for the wig industry grew. She even moved to South Korea to work at a wig factory for six months to support her dissertation, which centered on studying the “manufacturing geopolitical ties” of a consumer product. “I became obsessed,” Abdulsalam explained to Inc. The Wig Fix The dissertation’s outcome later inspired the creation of The Wig Fix in 2020, a transparent, patented, hypoallergenic silicone wig grip that can secure a wig with...
Tyler Perry’s minority stake in BET+ has been acquired. Perry launched his first series with BET in 2019 and, in connection with the streaming platform, has produced more than 700 episodes, Deadline reports. His most recent deal was valued at nine figures with BET Media Group and is slated to conclude by 2028 and encompasses producing new and existing series for both BET and BET+, according to a separate article from Deadline. Perry was a minority shareholder in BET+, with his stake estimated at 25%, which would amount to tens of millions of dollars, Deadline reports. Now, Perry’s stake is being acquired by Paramount. In June, BET+ will no longer exist as a standalone streaming service, and its more than 1,000 hours of content, spanning originals, movies, and specials, will move to Paramount+ . “We share the same ambition to expand the reach of BET content, and Tyler will continue to be a valued and important partner through his overall programming agreement,” a Paramount...
30-year-old NFL athlete Jaylon Smith is investing his earnings to ensure long-term wealth. Smith is guided as a client by Michael Ledo’s RISE Family Office, formerly RISE Sports Advisors, a multi-family Dallas-based financial services firm with nearly $300 million in assets under management, according to information shared with AFROTECH™. RISE Family Office taps into its institutional investor network to source private company deals, creating more structured investment opportunities for athletes and high-net-worth entrepreneurs. For Smith, this led him to invest $100,000 in the Series C round of the health tech company Oura during his final run with the Dallas Cowboys in 2021. “The deal was brought to me by RISE,” Smith told AFROTECH™. “And it was a thing where I was very intrigued with the health and wellness space, particularly around different devices or tools to better help gather data. Oura was one of the deals that was brought to me, and I decided to invest.” Smith has since...
Keith Lee has made his first investment in the restaurant space. Lee, a content creator with 17.4 million followers on TikTok alone (as of this writing), is known for dedicating his time to amplifying mom-and-pop restaurants and small businesses. He doesn’t seek preferential treatment, ensuring he has the same experience as everyday customers while delivering authentic reviews that have often changed the trajectory of a business altogether. Examples include Janel Prator, founder of The Puddery, who was on the brink of closing her shop until a food review from Lee went viral, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. Prator was also given a $50,000 grant from Lee in partnership with Toast through its “Little Things” campaign. While Lee’s commitment to supporting entrepreneurs has long guided him, he is taking it to the next level by joining his family to invest in Brooklyn Dumpling Shop, an Asian-inspired fusion restaurant and consumer products brand with 22 operating locations, according to...
Michael B. Jordan’s marketing agency, Obsidianworks, is now fully independent after buying back its stake from marketing agency 160over90. Obsidianworks In 2020, Jordan launched Black-owned and led marketing agency Obsidianworks, alongside former Nike executive Chad Easterling, according to Variety. The venture is a continuation of Jordan’s mission for equity in Hollywood . As AFROTECH™ previously told you, Jordan was named to Time 100’s list for being “ a rising force for equity in Hollywood. ” His push for equity has led him to contractually require specific diversity benchmarks for a film’s cast and crew. “You know what you get when you’re dealing with myself and when it comes to [the] workplace, you have an environment that’s reflective of the world that we all live in,” Jordan told AFROTECH™. One of Obsidianworks’ projects is the “Legacy Classic,” an HBCU men’s basketball showcase televised in Newark, NJ, that has featured a startup competition for Black founders, per...
Ex-MIT and Stanford engineer KJ Hardrict is changing the interview process for job seekers. Hardrict’s background spans engineering, venture capital, and content. He has worked at Link Ventures as a principal and served as a founding engineer and a senior engineer for various startups, according to his LinkedIn profile. Hardrict has also gained more than 115,000 YouTube subscribers. It’s the variety of his experience that has given him a front seat to the hiring process, Hardrict acknowledged to AFROTECH™. “As an engineer and startup operator, I saw how often incredible people were filtered out before anyone spoke to them. As an investor, I saw founders struggling to identify key talent in a sea of resumes,” he said. Hardrict also considered his own experience in the job market and noticed that being seen, not just read about, set him up for success. “Recruiters would watch my videos on YouTube, and within a few minutes, they understood who I was and how I thought. That made me...
Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland are once again investing in Houston, TX, the city that shaped their careers. The duo has found continued success beyond their involvement in Destiny’s Child, originally named Girl’s Tyme. Beyoncé is a Houston native and spent most of her childhood in the city’s Third Ward, the Houston Chronicle reports. Rowland is an Atlanta, GA native, but has credited Houston as the city that changed her life both personally and professionally in a previous interview with AFROTECH™. “It was a city that grew me up. I always say Atlanta-born me. Houston raised me. Houston raised me with Southern values. Houston raised me to be proud of my Blackness as well,” Rowland said. Now the pair are giving back to the city by investing in an $8.4 million permanent housing project called the Knowles-Rowland House, BET reports. The 31-unit project will support those experiencing homelessness. Additionally, it will offer social services, including case management, mental health...
Byron Allen is now an investor in Starz. Allen is a serial investor and businessman with an extensive portfolio that includes The Weather Channel. He acquired the company for $300 million in 2018 through his company, Entertainment Studios, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. Allen also owns TheGrio, a media company covering breaking news, politics, lifestyle, and entertainment centered on the Black community, according to its website. Per information on Allen Media Group’s website, Allen has one of the largest cable network portfolios in the industry, which includes Comedy.Tv, Cars.TV, ES.TV, JusticeCentral.TV, MyDestination.TV, Pets.TV, Recipe.TV, Local Now, and more. AOL also reports that Allen owns 27 broadcast television stations affiliated with ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox across 21 U.S. markets, while his television networks collectively reach nearly 300 million subscribers. In 2025, Allen sold 10 local TV stations to Gray Media for $171 million, according to Deadline. Starz Allen is...
Morris Brown College has been awarded new funding to support its hospitality management program. The Historically Black College and University (HBCU) is currently led by Dr. Kevin James, who, in a conversation with Atlanta News First, joked that he had recently taken a five-day vacation. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, in January the college’s Board of Trustees removed James from his post as president “without providing specific cause or substantive explanation,” he said in a post on LinkedIn. He was reinstated on Jan. 20, 2026, and the board acknowledged that it had not complied with the procedural and contractual requirements outlined in James’ employment agreement, which has him under contract until 2029, according to his post. “We are back. We are pushing forward, and we’re very, very excited,” James told Atlanta News First. He aims for the college to become a top institution and describes the school’s era as a “hard reset,” according to the outlet. The college was recently...
A $5 billion entertainment district in Atlanta has received financial backing from powerhouses across sectors. Centennial Yards Years in the making, Centennial Yards is an ambitious project led by the Los Angeles-based CIM Group. The project is expected to cost at least $5 billion, and developers see it as an opportunity to revitalize the Atlanta area ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. In 2018, the city council greenlit a $1.9 billion incentive plan for the project, which put entertainment and high-end apartments and hotels at the forefront. The project plans reserved 20% of new residential units for affordable housing, though the developer could pay an in lieu fee of about $140,000 per unit to forgo this requirement. Per the outlet, CIM opted to pay the in lieu fee of approximately $8.5 million for its first apartment tower, The Mitchell. Still, the developer says they are “ dedicated to fulfilling our commitment to provide affordable...
Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star Donovan Mitchell wants to make wellness more accessible to families. WellWithAll Mitchell told AFROTECH™ he is intentional about making moves that will last beyond his playing days. Generational wellness is part of his long-term strategy, and he aims to invest in “real, accessible tools and resources that help families take control of their health every day.” According to a press release shared with AFROTECH™, Mitchell is aligning himself with WellWithAll, a wellness brand co-founded by Demond Martin and Carmichael Roberts. Per the company’s website, WellWithAll is a black-owned and offers supplements and energy drinks. According to Cuisine Noir, its energy drinks contain 45 calories and 80 milligrams of natural caffeine for energy. The brand can also be found at retailers such as Walmart, Target, and Fruitful Yield Health Foods, according to its website. What’s more, 20% of WellWithAll’s profits are allocated to health equity initiatives, notes Cuisine...
![Former NBA Player Iman Shumpert Says He Was An Early Investor In Uber And The Investment ‘Flipped About 2 [Or] 3 Times’](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.afrotech.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F02%2FIman-Shumpert.jpg&w=3840&q=75 "Former NBA Player Iman Shumpert Says He Was An Early Investor In Uber And The Investment ‘Flipped About 2 [Or] 3 Times’")
Iman Shumpert’s early investment in Uber was a home run. Decision To Invest In Uber The former NBA player appeared on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast and revealed he had a chance to invest in Uber at a time when he was making little money. When he learned about the opportunity, Shumpert shared that the concept sounded familiar, felt familiar to him, reminding him of the luxury cab service featured in the 1997 comedy-action film “B.A.P.S.” called Page-A-Cab Luxury Cab Co. “Somebody said something about that Uber sounded like, you remember rent a cab. In B.A.P.S., they basically was talking about Uber. What if you could have a private driver whenever you want… And when I heard of Uber, I’m like, ‘That’s kind of like’… And I’m like, ‘But wait a second, let me put a little money in there,'” Shumpert recalled on the podcast. Why He Sold His Shares In Uber Shumpert invested in Uber early. It is unclear how much his stake in the company was, but he went on to sell those shares because he...