Tag Archives: grow with google

Expanding opportunities for Indigenous communities

November is Native American Heritage Month in the U.S. and is an opportune time to educate and raise awareness about the achievements and unique challenges that Tribal Nations face — both historically and presently — and how tribal citizens have worked together to overcome those challenges. One such example is the impact the pandemic has had on tribal economies and Native American-owned businesses.

As the President of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) — a long-time partner of Google — I’ve met many Native artisans and small-business owners over the past two years, who once had thriving businesses but now struggle to transition to online platforms to keep their businesses afloat. According to the U.S. Census, Native American-owned businesses contribute over $35 billion to the economy and employ over 200,000 people, yet one in six businesses (16.7%) have reported complete revenue losses due to the lingering impacts of the pandemic. Now, more than ever, our businesses require adequate resources for them to thrive, and there is no denying that technology is helping create that pathway forward.

I’m thrilled to share that the Grow with Google Digital Coaches program, which equips businesses with robust digital skills to unlock growth opportunities, is expanding to train Native-led businesses with the help of a dedicated Digital Coach from the community. We’ll be able to further support Native-led businesses thanks to a new grant from Google.org to help NCAI strengthen digital skill training.

Headshot of Jake Foreman, a Grow with Google Indigenous Community Digital Coach

I’m honored to introduce Henry Jake Foreman as Grow with Google’s first-ever Indigenous Community Digital Coach. As a Digital Coach, Jake will empower tribal small businesses with monthly digital skills workshops, local hands-on coaching opportunities, and events for businesses to come together and learn from one another. Jake is an Absentee Shawnee citizen who resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is a Program Director at New Mexico Community Capital. As a trainer for NCAI’s training program, incubated with support from Grow with Google, Jake has helped hundreds of Native American entrepreneurs in New Mexico develop skill sets to support and build their businesses. We’re excited to see Grow with Google build on the success of that collaboration as they expand the Digital Coaches program. Jake will now bring these trainings directly to tribal communities across Indian Country and partner with NCAI to host monthly national webinars beginning in 2023.

In addition, Google.org is providing a $750,000 grant to support NCAI’s own institutional capacity and positioning in the Indigenous digital skilling space. NCAI will directly invest this into IT capabilities to foster a community of learning and distill best IT practices to contribute toward the broader ecosystem. This investment builds on the previous $1.25M in grants used to help support Native-owned businesses — all done in service of helping more Indigenous people to achieve success and help bridge Indian Country’s digital divide.

Because Native-led businesses serve as the backbone for many tribal communities, it was a very special moment to first share this news with tribal leaders, NCAI members and Native youth at our NCAI 79th Annual Convention & Marketplace earlier this week. At the conference, we also had the pleasure of hosting Jake’s first digital skills workshop as a new Digital Coach. Undoubtedly, these tailored workshops and resources will help our businesses thrive online and grow tremendously. To learn more and sign up, visit g.co/grow/digitalcoachIC.

Related Article

Celebrate Native American artists in Chrome and ChromeOS

To celebrate Native American Heritage Month, we commissioned Native American artists to create a collection of themes for Chrome and ChromeOS.

Read Article

Supporting HBCU students on the path to tech careers

Last weekend I was welcomed back to my “home by the sea” — Hampton University, located on Chesapeake Bay — as the co-grand marshal for this year’s homecoming festivities along with fellow alumna Dr. Dietra Trent, White House Director of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) initiatives. As a proud Hampton alumna and Google’s Chief Diversity Officer, it gives me great pride to continue Google’s long-standing partnership with the HBCU community.

I’ve seen firsthand the impact HBCU graduates are having on the next generation of leaders and thinkers across today’s industries, including tech. In a recent United Negro College Fund (UNCF) study, despite only making up 3% of the nation’s colleges and universities, HBCUs produce almost 20% of all African American graduates and 25% of African American graduates with science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) degrees.

A woman in sunglasses, wearing a blue blazer and white shirt, stands beside a black sports car with a white sign in the window that reads “Hampton Grand Marshall.”

Melonie Parker, Google’s Chief Diversity Officer at Hampton’s homecoming.

At Google, we remain steadfast in our investment and support for HBCUs, and we’ve partnered closely with them to build pathways to tech. One way we’ve done that is by welcoming students from 15 HBCUs for full-time roles and internships in the last year alone, and we've expanded our recruiting efforts to more than 900 schools in the last decade. We’ve also invested in programming to further opportunities and pathways for HBCU and Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) students, including:

  • Tech Exchange, a semester-long immersive program for select HBCU and HSI students, has quadrupled in size and expanded to serve students from 16 HBCUs and Hispanic-Serving Institutions since launching in 2017.
  • Our Pathways to Tech initiative was designed to build equity for HBCU computing education, help job seekers find tech roles, and ensure that Black employees have growth opportunities and feel included at work.
  • The Grow with Google HBCU Career Readiness Program, a partnership with the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, brings digital skills training into the career centers of HBCUs. The program recently expanded to 20 HBCUs, and aims to help 20,000 students learn digital skills by the end of the current school year.
  • Finally, our Google in Residence (GIR) program gives experienced Google software engineers the chance to teach introductory computer science classes, which have reached more than 8,000 HBCU and HSI students since 2013. Two of our GIR students actually became instructors this year, and many have gone on to internships in our Student Training in Engineering Program and full-time software engineering roles at Google.

We also recognize the unique needs of students, faculty and staff within each of these historic institutions. I meet regularly with the HBCU Presidents’ Council, which advises on creating and executing meaningful programming that meets the needs of HBCU students. In 2021, we provided a $50 million grant to 10 HBCUs to support scholarships, invest in technical infrastructure for in-class and remote learning, and develop curricula and career support programs.

To build on this, Monday I was honored to announce a $5 million Google.org grant to Spelman College’s Center for Minority Women in STEM. A team of Google.org Fellows will partner with Spelman to build the first database that will conduct and publicize research on the experiences of women from historically underrepresented groups in STEM. The findings will be used to help empower and elevate women in STEM fields. This week we also announced $300,000 in funding for 18 HBCU and HSI partners to support faculty and students in tech majors. We plan to distribute this funding annually to enable growth and retention in computer science departments.

Finally, supporting our HBCU and HSI partners means showing up and continuing to shine a light on these historic and critical institutions:

  • We were proud to sponsor the National HBCU Week Conference organized by the The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity through Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The event brought together more than 1,500 HBCU students, faculty and community leaders from across the U.S. for the first time since 2019. We hosted panels and workshops on career opportunities, resume building and personal brands.
  • Just last month we were the halftime sponsor at the inaugural HBCU New York Football Classic. More than 35,000 fans gathered in the stands for the September 17 game between Morehouse College and Howard University as part of HBCU Week. Our sponsorship included scholarships to 105 HBCU students and a partnership with HBCU Tools for School, a nonprofit that provides access to tools, resources and networks critical for academic success.
  • Finally, we’re working with the NBA Foundation on an upcoming promotion where a portion of proceeds from Pixel sales on the Google Store will go to HBCUs.
Melonie Parker and others share why HBCUs are an important partner in our work to expand equity
10:25

For more than a century, HBCUs have been a driving force in the cultivation of academic excellence and professional achievement within the Black community. We will continue to do our part to support these institutions, and their students, as we work to make tech more inclusive and representative at all levels of the workforce.

Preparing learners for growing industries with higher ed

Ensuring today’s workforce has the skills required for an evolving labor market requires creative approaches. That’s why we’ve been working with higher education to help students and people already in the job market reach their earning potential. Educational institutions in all 50 states, including over 300 universities, community colleges and career and technical education high schools, have incorporated Google Career Certificates to help people begin promising careers in growing fields.

Today, we’re announcing Industry Specializations, a new addition to the Google Career Certificates program. We’ve joined forces with leading universities so people can learn from top experts at Google and world-class faculty in an affordable and accessible way — no experience or application required. The university-built Specializations will provide Google Career Certificate graduates and new learners with additional expertise and skills for jobs in some of the fastest-growing industries.

Learners can build on their skills and access new career opportunities by enrolling in a Specialization to prepare for entry-level jobs like:

Plus, top institutions are working with us to reach even more people with the Google Career Certificates. UCLA Extension, one of the first and largest continuing education providers in the country, is offering the Google Career Certificates to any learner, at no cost, through UCLAxOpen. Stanford Digital Education is partnering with the Bay Area Community College Consortium to provide in-person and virtual instruction programs to deliver the Google Career Certificates across the Bay Area. And the SkillUp Google Career Certificate program at Rutgers University provides alumni with free access to the Google Career Certificates through their career services office.

Many of these partnerships are happening state-wide:

  • The Technical College System of Georgia launched the Google Career Certificates as a non-credit option to all 22 of their colleges.
  • The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is working with member universities across the state to implement the certificates as a non-credit offering to undergraduates, and will extend access to the community by offering them through university workforce and continuing education offices.
  • The North Carolina Community College System has developed credit-bearing courses around the Google Project Management and Data Analytics Certificates and has made them available in their central course catalog for all 58 colleges.
  • In addition to these states, community college systems in Connecticut, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio and Virginia are offering Google Career Certificates to help support learners’ employability.

By completing a Google Career Certificate and an Industry Specialization, learners will earn a credential from Google and from the participating university. They will also gain access to jobs through our employer consortium, which includes more than 150 companies — such as Adobe, Deloitte, Lowe’s, Verizon and Google — that are eager to hire talent in these fields.

We’re proud to work with higher education institutions to create additional accessible and flexible pathways for economic mobility. To learn more about these opportunities, visit grow.google/certificates. And if you are an academic institution interested in partnering with us, more information can be found on our website.

Bite-size skills training for Brits short on time

Digital skills are a key part of many jobs and are crucial for helping small businesses grow. But with the hustle of daily life, many of us struggle to find the time to learn valuable new skills that could help with landing a new job, earning more money or growing a business.

That’s why we’ve asked for advice from four people who’ve done this before: presenter and former footballer Ian Wright, entrepreneur and Dragon’s Den investor Steven Bartlett, finance professional turned YouTuber Patricia Bright, and founder of notonthehighstreet.co.uk Holly Tucker. Based on their experiences with switching careers or starting a business by learning a new skill, they’ve helped us create Skills to Go, a free, bitesize digital skills training programme.

Image shows man in front of bus with advice about keeping your CV brief overlaid

You can complete the short training sessions, which range from five to 20 minutes, as and when you have time — while commuting, over a coffee break or in between appointments. Our Skills to Go site suggests relevant topics — including CV writing, changing careers and growing a business online — based on how much time you have to spare.

We’ve built this programme in response to new data from YouGov that reveals that lack of time is the number one barrier stopping people from learning skills that could take their careers and businesses to the next level. And it’s a very real need: in the UK, more than 90% of people are online, yet fewer than half of businesses have a website. Businesses struggle to recruit people with digital skills; the digital skills gap accounts for 30% of unfilled vacancies, and costs the UK economy £63 billion per year.

Our new Skills to Go campaign is just one of the ways that we’re working to help address the nation’s skills shortage. Since launching our first digital skills training programme in Leeds in 2015, we’ve visited more than 500 locations up and down the country, and have provided digital skills training to more than 800,000 people in the UK. We offer individuals and business owners opportunities to, for example, take part in one-to-one mentoring sessions or learn about digital marketing to help them advance their careers or boost their businesses. This year, we’re visiting more than 30 locations, such as Newport and Cambridgeshire, to help people learn new skills and get Britain growing.

Image showing man sitting at a table with advice overlaid about how 66% of shopping is done on mobile, so websites should be built for speed.

Of course, we can’t do this alone. Earlier this year, alongside a number of top UK employers including the BBC, BT Group, Deloitte, John Lewis Partnership and NatWest, we announced our Employer Consortium, which recognises Google Career Certificates when recruiting for much-needed tech roles, providing an accessible path for Brits into high-growth, well-paid tech jobs.

Everyone should have the opportunity to gain digital skills regardless of their location, race, age, gender or education level. That's why we’re supporting Good Things Foundation’s work with 1,500 community organisations across the UK, which supports up to 25,000 people from underrepresented communities to get online and learn essential digital skills.

These are all part of our efforts to make it easier than ever for you to gain new skills, wherever you’re at in your career. So the next time you have a spare five minutes, search ‘Google Skills Training’ to learn from business experts like Stephen, Holly and Patricia and boost your business or career.

Adelante: Progress for Latino communities across the U.S.

Ver abajo versión en español

I grew up in Argentina and came to this country 20 years ago. Like many fellow Latinos, I was looking for better opportunities — in pursuit of my American dream — while holding on to and sharing my culture, language and identity. It’s the reason why my daughter's first language was Spanish, and why I still drink mate and enjoy empanadas salteñas whenever I can. I think that’s what Hispanic Heritage Month is all about: honoring our culture, celebrating our contributions and thinking about our future.

This Hispanic Heritage Month, I am proud to share that Google has been hard at work for the past year to open new paths for future generations of Latinos. In 2021, we made a $15 million commitment to economic equity for Latinos. Today, we are providing an update on our work.

Earlier this summer, we announced the first 50 recipients of the Google for Startups Latino Founders Fund at the UNIDOSUS National Conference. Each of the recipients received $100,000 in non-dilutive funding and $100,000 in Google Cloud credits to help their startups grow. The founders are now working hand-in-hand with Googlers, getting deep mentorship from technical and business experts, and building community with fellow founders.

Over the last two years, through Google.org grantees like the Hispanic Federation and Grow with Google partners like the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), we’ve provided digital skills to more than 35,000 Latinos across the U.S. and Puerto Rico for the growing number of jobs that require them. According to the Hispanic Federation, those that received digital skills training through their programs are seeing an average salary increase of $13,000 — that is real, meaningful change. As part of our commitment and ongoing partnership with the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, we are hosting the Grow with Google Latino-Owned Business Summit live from their national conference in Phoenix, which will also be live streamed on YouTube.

We are proud of our progress and the impact of our commitments as we continue to execute against them. We are deeply committed to continue this work, engaging, investing and honoring the Latino community during this Hispanic Heritage Month and all year long. Stay tuned for more to come.

Adelante: Progreso para las comunidades Latinas en los Estados Unidos

Crecí en Argentina y vine a este país hace 20 años. Al igual que muchos otros Latinos, estaba buscando mejores oportunidades - en la búsqueda de mi sueño americano - mientras mantenía y compartía mi cultura, idioma e identidad. Es la razón por la cual el idioma materno de mi hija fue el español, y por eso todavía tomo mate y disfruto de las empanadas salteñas siempre que puedo. Creo que de eso se trata el Mes de la Herencia Hispana: rendirle homenaje a nuestra cultura, celebrar nuestras contribuciones y pensar en nuestro futuro.

Este Mes de la Herencia Hispana, me enorgullece compartir que Google ha trabajado arduamente durante el último año para abrirle nuevos caminos a las futuras generaciones de Latinos. En 2021, hicimos un compromiso de $15 millones para la equidad económica de los Latinos. Hoy, estamos proporcionando una actualización de nuestro trabajo.

A principios de este verano, anunciamos los primeros 50 beneficiarios del Fondo de Fundadores Latinos de Google para Startups en la Conferencia Nacional UNIDOSUS. Cada uno de los destinatarios recibió $100,000 en financiamiento no dilutivo y $100,000 en créditos de Google Cloud para apoyar el crecimiento de sus startups. Los fundadores ahora trabajan mano a mano con los Googlers, obteniendo una tutoría profunda de expertos técnicos y comerciales y desarrollo comunitario con otros fundadores.

En los últimos dos años, a través de los beneficiarios de Google.org como la organización Hispanic Federation y los socios de Grow with Google como la Asociación Hispana de Colegios y Universidades (HACU), hemos brindado habilidades digitales a más de 35,000 Latinos en los Estados Unidos y Puerto Rico para el creciente número de trabajos que las requieren.Según la organización Hispanic Federation, aquellos que recibieron capacitación digital por medio de sus programas están experimentando un aumento salarial de $13,000; ese es un cambio real y significativo. Como parte de nuestro compromiso y asociación continua con la Cámara de Comercio Hispana de Estados Unidos, estamos organizando la cumbre de empresas de propiedad Latina, Grow with Google Latino-Owned Business Summit, en vivo desde su conferencia nacional en Phoenix, que también se transmitirá en vivo en YouTube.

Estamos orgullosos de nuestro progreso y del impacto de nuestros compromisos a medida que continuamos ejecutandolos. Estamos profundamente comprometidos a continuar con este trabajo, motivando, invirtiendo y honrando a la comunidad Latina durante este Mes de la Herencia Hispana y durante todo el año. ¡Estén atentos qué hay más por venir.

Our continued investment in Black founders and funders

For too long, Black startup founders and Black investors have been locked out of the funding necessary to succeed. In 2020, Black founders raised less than 1% of all venture capital dollars invested in the U.S. This disparity has not only hindered innovation, but also limited opportunities for economic opportunity, wealth generation and upward mobility. That’s why we made a series of commitments in 2020 to improve access to capital for Black founders and funders.

We're three years into these commitments, and we continue to invest in the Black startup community. In that time, we’ve expanded our Google for Startups Black Founders Fund globally. We have now provided $30 million in non-dilutive cash funding (meaning without taking equity in the startup) and support to entrepreneurs in the U.S., Brazil, Europe and Africa, where earlier this week we announced the second group of recipients to receive funding. We’ve also allocated $100 million to Black-led venture capital firms, startups and the organizations that support them. Today we're sharing the latest recipients of these respective programs.

The next Google for Startups Black Founders Fund recipients in the U.S.

We’re welcoming 50 more entrepreneurs to the Black Founders Fund. Their businesses are solving important problems. Welfie, for example, provides equitable healthcare to families across the country, and Tanoshi serves tens of thousands of students with educational tools. These companies aren’t just doing good; they're also growing quickly and building sustainable businesses. Here are a few more founders from this year’s group and their plans for the funding.

  • Chudi Iregbulen sitting with hands folded, leaning towards the camera smiling and wearing a black jacket

    “We have been preparing for a long time and we can finally capitalize on this incredible opportunity. The support will be used to launch into new cities, fund marketing campaigns and grow our team." — Chudi Iregbulem, Beatmatch

  • Rishielle Giscombe stares directly into the camera with her chin resting on her hand. She is wearing a cream blazer and watch.

    “With this fund we will be expanding our sales and customer relation team to ensure that we keep our customers at the front of our company and to convert more beauty professionals to be a part of our company nationwide.” — Rishielle Giscombe, Glamo

  • Evan Leaphart smiles into the camera with a palm tree behind him, and a fitted charcoal t shirt on.

    “The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund means a lot to us. The support will be used to ramp up our sales and marketing efforts." — Evan Leaphart, Kiddie Kredit

  • Anthony Edwards Jr stands with his arms crossed in a vivid sweater with orange, green, teal, salmon and cream stripes. He smiles at the camera and leans against a wall behind him.

    “I’m most excited about learning and sharing experiences with my new cohort of amazing professionals. With the money awarded to us, we will be growing our sales and customer service team.” — Anthony Edwards Jr, EatOkra

  • Headshot of Kyla Bolden in a cream button-up sweater, smiling at the camera with her long hair half-up.

    “The support will be used to continue to build out our elearning platform and community so that we can provide an even more impactful learning environment for our students.” — Kyla Bolden, Wiz Kid Learning

  • Kayla Wright-Jackson looks into the camera wearing a powder blue blazer over a black Transition t shirt. She wears golden hoops and has her hair up in a bun.

    “The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund means endless opportunities await us. The support will be used to optimize marketing and sales generation in our underserved market.” — Kayla Wright-Jackson, Transition

  • Candice Speicher smiles at the camera while seated in a gray blouse and mauve pants. She wears glasses and hoop earrings.

    “It’s been incredibly hard to raise capital — but the support will be used to automate our sales funnel to reach more businesses, which helps our goal of becoming the informational resource this industry needs!” — Candice Speicher, Buoy Pricing

  • Jeffrey Osuji smiles at the camera with his arms crossed, wearing a black turtleneck, black blazer, and with a black and gold watch on.

    “The Black Founders Fund will enable us to optimize our event discovery strategy to better serve our customers and make a pivotal hire to drive more impactful partnerships. This support will be invaluable to us reaching our marketing & revenue goals in 2023.” — Jeffrey Osuji, Eventnoire

  • Arion Long smiles warmly at the camera with her hair down and straight. She rests one hand on her chin and one on the side of her face. She wears a satin champagne-colored top.

    “The support from the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund will be used to ensure that Femly's organic period care is readily available & accessible around the globe for free!” — Arion Long, Femly

  • Ashton Keys smiles at the camera wearing a gray polo and gray letterman jacket with a large, white, “A” on it. Behind him, a football field is visible.

    "This is a big time of the year in regards to the upcoming season and we are planning to use this capital to grow our sales processes, grow the team and improve our data strategies.” — Ashton Keys, Athlytic

In addition to $100,000 in cash funding, founders receive $100,000 in Cloud credits, hands-on support from Googlers and access to mental health and business coaching at no cost. Founders have told us this funding has provided the spark they’ve needed to hire, boost revenues and raise the additional capital critical to their growth. In fact, the recipients of our first $10 million in funding in the U.S. have gone on to raise 13 times that amount — over $139 million in follow-on funding after our investment. With the help of our people, products and resources, we know Google is uniquely positioned to catalyze the growth of Black-led startups.

Investing in more Black-led venture capital funds

A historic scarcity of Black investors has contributed to the sparse funding levels among Black founders. Black investors are more likely to have Black founders in their networks and more likely to empathize with business models serving Black communities. By supporting Black funders we’re able to increase both our reach and impact.

In 2020, Alphabet committed $100 million to invest in Black-led venture capital firms, startups and organizations supporting Black entrepreneurs. Last year, our Alphabet-wide team led by leaders across CapitalG, GV and Google allocated $60 million in capital to six Black-led venture capital firms, as well as Black-owed startups and nonprofit organizations supporting Black entrepreneurship and business. In addition to capital, these investors received training, technology and advisory sessions from experts across Alphabet and Google. Today, we’re sharing the news that we’ve deployed the remaining capital to a number of nonprofit organizations and the following Black-led venture firms:

  • Black Tech Nation Ventures: a Pittsburgh-based technology venture fund that is majority Black-owned and majority diverse-invested and focused on wealth creation for untapped markets and underinvested entrepreneurs.
  • Collide Capital: a Los Angeles and New York-based 100% Black-owned VC firm aiming to usher in a new era of venture capital where opportunities go to the most deserving, not the most privileged. Building off of the success of their top-quartile Fund Zero of 34 companies, the Collide Capital team has closed a Fund I to invest in founders with the lived experiences, courage, and grit to create solutions for the next generation.
  • Concrete Rose: a Bay Area-based investment fund focused on using financial and social capital to build exceptional early-stage companies and close gaps for underrepresented talent. Concrete Rose also received funding during the previous capital allocation announced last year.
  • Heirloom Capital Partners: an Atlanta-based investment fund founded by founder-operator and board director Tristan Walker. Heirloom aims to partner with the founders of disruptive, meaningful companies committed to developing culturally connected products and services that improve lives and serve the needs of people of color.
  • Serena Ventures: a San Francisco-based investment firm that champions founders whose perspectives and innovations level the playing field for all types of entrepreneurs. Serena Ventures invests in products and ideas that unlock value for investors, doors for founders and opportunities for everyone to live better.
  • Share Ventures: a Los Angeles-based investment fund focused on performance management. Share Ventures is a venture studio building the infrastructure to repeatedly discover, validate, and scale new companies.
  • Zeal Capital Partners: headquartered in Washington, DC, Zeal serves as a category-specific early-stage investment franchise that partners with exceptional, diverse management teams. Leveraging their market-backed investment discipline coined “Inclusive Investing,” they invest in financial technology and future of work startups that use technology to narrow the wealth and skills gaps.
  • Fourteen leaders smile into the camera.

    Alphabet has now invested $100 million in Black-led venture capital firms, startups and organizations supporting Black entrepreneurs. These fourteen investment executives lead the seven venture firms announced as recipients today.

  • Nasir Qadree smiles at the camera. He is wearing a white button down shirt. There are two lamps and a white wall behind him.

    "We are thrilled to partner with Alphabet because it allows us to further execute on our goal to partner alongside diverse management teams rethinking the building blocks of wealth.” - Nasir Qadree, Founder and Managing Partner, Zeal Capital Partners

  • Hamet Watt folds his arms and smiles into the camera. There is a white wall behind him, as well as some hanging lights. He is wearing a black t-shirt.

    "We are so excited to partner with Alphabet. It has a unique understanding of the opportunity between our foundry and our fund and is well-aligned with our mission to found and fund companies that unlock human potential." – Hamet Watt, Share Ventures

  • Serena Williams folds her arms and wears a light blue sweater with bronze buttons. Alison Rapaport Stillman places her arms on her hips and wears a bright red dress with long sleeves and a matching red belt.

    Managing partner Serena Williams and general partner Alison Rapaport Stillman lead Serena Ventures, an investment firm that champions founders whose perspectives and innovations level the playing field for all types of entrepreneurs.

    "Alison and I are thrilled to partner with Alphabet. We plan to continue finding amazing founders and companies that improve the lives of everyday people.” – Serena Williams, managing partner, Serena Ventures

  • Tristan Walker looks seriously into the camera. He is wearing a white shirt and faded blue jeans jacket and is standing in front of a gray background.

    Founder-operator and board director Tristan Walker built Heirloom Capital Partners to partner with the founders of disruptive, meaningful companies developing culturally connected products and services that improve lives and serve the needs of people of color.

  • Five team members stand near a glass door and smile in the camera. They are all wearing black tops and black pants.

    “We’re excited to continue working with Alphabet to give underrepresented founders and professionals access to the social capital and resources all talent needs to reach its true potential.” – Sean Mendy, partner, Concrete Rose Capital

  • Team photo of Brian Hollins and Aaron Samuels, both wearing long-sleeved white button down shirts, brown belts, and navy slacks. They are standing in front of a river.

    Brian Hollins and Aaron Samuels created Collide Capital, a 100% Black-owned VC firm aiming to usher in a new era of venture capital where opportunities go to the most deserving, not the most privileged.

  • Sean Sebastian, Kelauni Jasmyn, and David Motley standing in front of a white background

    "Alphabet is not just an investor; they are a partner. Their know-how, network, and willingness to innovate alongside us is the type of collaboration that is necessary for us to transform and diversify tech solutions and VC funding."- Kelauni Jasymn, Black Tech Nation Ventures

We’ve seen firsthand how this powerful combination of financial support with mentorship, training, mental health coaching and community contributes to helping fuel innovation, wealth generation and equal access to economic opportunity. And we will continue to find opportunities to support these incredible Black founders and funders. Next up, our Google for Startups Accelerator: Black Founders, which provides deep technical support for later stage startups, kicks off with its newest group of participants this fall. And later this year, we’ll bring together our Georgia-based Black Founders Fund recipients, investors, partners and more in Atlanta to celebrate those founders and share more about their businesses. We’re looking forward to seeing where these companies go from here.

Bringing computer science education to 11 million students

Earlier this summer, I had the chance to meet alumni of The Hidden Genius Project, an Oakland-based international nonprofit that provides Black male youth with training and mentoring in technology, entrepreneurship and leadership. Many of these graduates had no formal computer science education in their curriculum before joining the organization. Thanks to the technical and coding skills they learned through The Hidden Genius Project, they are now using technology to build their own businesses. One graduate, James, learned how to wire frame, which he’s using to launch an app-based shoe restoration business. Another graduate, Jeremiah, is using the digital skills he learned to increase his company’s online presence and reach more customers for his cleaning services company.

For these young men and for so many other students, computer science (CS) education is providing a foundation in the skills they’ll need for their future careers. Yet there remain deep opportunity gaps in education that prevent everyone from accessing those skills equally.

At Google, we believe educational opportunities should be available regardless of socioeconomic status, background, race or geography. So today, we’re building on our long-time support for nonprofits with an additional $20 million commitment to expand CS education access to more than 11 million students across the U.S. — including more support for The Hidden Genius Project. This brings our total commitment to CS education to more than $240 million since 2004.

Student Ian stands behind a desk operating a laptop to demonstrate his platform for Sundar, who is standing to the right of the desk. Both are smiling. A screen in the background shows the Google.org and The Hidden Genius Project logos.

Sundar talks with The Hidden Genius Project alum Ian Bundy-Weiss during the program’s visit to Mountain View in June 2022. Ian founded My Drip, a platform for fashion designers.

We’ll focus our efforts on supporting national and local organizations who reach underserved students in major urban centers and rural communities, and who help governments and educators implement CS education plans nationwide.

In addition to The Hidden Genius Project, we’ll provide support for local nonprofits across the country, with a focus on Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Washington D.C. and Los Angeles. We’re looking forward to helping advance programs like the Computing Integrated Teacher Education project at the City University of New York, to incorporate CS education into the curriculum for new teachers, and supporting CodePath in Chicago and Atlanta, to help students from underrepresented communities work towards tech-based careers.

Sundar and 4-H President and CEO Jennifer Sirangelo stand to the left of a whiteboard watching a student in a blue top reaching up to complete a coding activity. Two other students in white look on from the right of the whiteboard.

Sundar Pichai and 4-H President and CEO Jennifer Sirangelo join students in a coding activity at a 4-H computer science education event in Mayes County, Oklahoma, in 2019.

To widen access to CS education for students in rural and under-resourced communities, we’re extending our commitment to4-H. With our support, since 2019, 4-H has introduced1.4 million students to CS education pathways, 65% of them in rural communities. The new grant we're providing will support 4-Hers throughCooperative Extension's programs and resources, helping 6 million young people and more than 3,500 educators.

Finally, we’ll provide funding to the Expanding Computing Education Pathways (ECEP) Alliance, a national network coordinated by the Texas Advanced Computing Center at The University of Texas at Austin, which aims to increase participation in CS education through state-level reforms. This funding will enable ECEP to partner with policymakers, educators and others on systemic changes that will help more students from a wider range of backgrounds pursue computing-related degrees. It will also support the addition of five new states to the ECEP Alliance, laying the foundation for a national framework.

Today’s announcement is part of our Grow with Google initiative and includes funding from Google.org. It builds on a lot of other good work underway. Earlier this year, Google partnered with the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture to train 2,000 teachers on digital skills, enabling them to reach 200,000 rural students by the end of the 2023 school year. And this summer, I joined other CEOs to send a message in support of making computer science a basic part of every K-12 classroom.

Of course, access to computing skills and digital knowledge is important for adults, too. More than 9 million people in the U.S. have already learned new skills through Grow with Google — including Google Career Certificates, which prepare people for jobs in growing fields. We’re building new financing models to extend these programs to more people and drive wage gains for workers. And we’ll continue to partner with organizations to provide local training opportunities, especially in marginalized communities.

We believe Google and other companies have a responsibility to help people get the skills they need to get a good job, start a new business, and provide a solid foundation for their families — no matter what their age or where they live. Computer science education is an important piece of this, and we look forward to working with our partners to unleash the talent and drive of millions of people in communities across the U.S.

Supporting Asian-owned businesses in your community

When I was 5, our family moved from New York City to the countryside outside of the city. My brother and I were the only kids of Asian descent in our elementary school. Our father was born in Yamaguchi, Japan to a Japanese mother and American father, and I always felt proud of that — but in this new environment, I instantly felt different.

These early experiences showed me just how important it is to show up for and with communities. Over the past two years, COVID-related small business closures and targeted acts of violence have reinforced the importance and impact of allyship — and have underscored how critical it is to support historically marginalized communities, including our Asian community. That’s why we’re announcing a new way to help Asian-owned businesses thrive.

Celebrating Asian-owned businesses

Starting today, US businesses can now add the Asian-owned attribute to their Business Profile on Search and Maps. In the coming weeks, ad-supported publishers will be able to identify as Asian-owned in Display & Video 360’s Marketplace, too.

A screenshot of East West Shop on Google Maps, showcasing the business identifies as Asian-owned, LGBTQ+ Friendly, and women-owned.

Businesses can opt in to adopt the attribute on their Business Profile and can easily opt out at any time. Once the attribute appears on a Business Profile, users will also be able to see the attribute. This update builds on the Black-owned, Latino-owned, veteran-owned, women-owned andLGBTQ+ owned business attributes, and is another way people can support a diversity of businesses across Google’s products and platforms.

As we were building this feature, we worked with hundreds of Asian-owned businesses to ensure the attribute celebrates our diverse and unique cultures. During that process, I was particularly struck by what Dennys Han, owner of East West Shop, shared with us about the power of community: “If someone is trying to accomplish something, the entire local Korean community will band together to help it come together. The idea of the community and group as a whole uplifting each other is fundamental to what we do.”

Building up Asian-owned businesses’ digital skills

Over the past few years, Grow with Google has partnered with the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce (USPAACC) to help Asian-owned small businesses grow. To date, we’ve helped more than 20,000 Asian-owned businesses expand their digital skills through workshops focusing on topics like e-commerce tools, design thinking for entrepreneurs and making decisions using analytics.

Today, we’re building upon that partnership. Together, USPAACC and Grow with Google will help an additional 10,000 Asian-owned small businesses gain digital skills to help them grow their businesses. And as the internet continues to grow in importance for shopping, nearly one quarter of Asian-owned business owners said their most important channel towards building community and financial support was across social media and online.

It’s our hope the Asian-owned attribute brings people together and provides our communities with much-needed recognition: to help them be seen and thrive. We are excited to spotlight Asian-owned businesses and highlight part of what makes our community unique and important.

A collage of 6 Asian-owned businesses, 3 on the top and 3 on the bottom with the Asian-owned attribute icon in the middle, a circular design with a red and yellow intertwining flower at its’ core. The top row of 3 (from left to right) include: pottery cups and plates on a table with Tortoise General Store owner holding 2 small dishes in the background, Good Hause Marketing Agency Business owner working, holding a marketing design poster board, and 3 t-shirts (black, pink, and white) hanging in East / West Shop. The bottom row of 3 (from left to right) include: the owner of Bollypop in red traditional dress from India twirling, the storefront of Jitlada restaurant, and the owner of Peru Films facing towards the right, looking down, and crossing his arms.

Top left to right:

Tortoise General Store, Owned by Taku and Keiko Shinomoto

Good Hause, Owned by Brittany Tran

East / West Shop, Owned by Dennys Han

Bottom left to right:

Bollypop, Owned by Aakansha Maheshwari

Jitlada, Owned by Sugar Sungkamee

Peru Films, Owned by Tanmay Chowdhary

Source: Google LatLong


Introducing the first 50 recipients of the Latino Founders Fund

Ver abajo versión en español

Since joining Google almost twelve years ago, it’s been a personal mission of mine to seek new ways for Google to provide access and opportunity to the Latino community. Most recently I've been focused on how we can provide this to the Latino startup community, where gaining access to funding — the necessary fuel to grow their companies – is a constant struggle. Latino-led businesses are the fastest-growing segment of U.S. small businesses, but as an aggregate they only receive 2% of total U.S. venture capital funding, despite comprising 20% of the U.S. population.

This disparity is why we committed $7 million last year to help Latino founders grow their businesses and support the organizations already nurturing communities of Latino-led startups. We allocated $5 million of that funding to our inaugural Google for Startups Latino Founders Fund, and today at the UnidosUS Annual Conference in San Antonio, we revealed the 50 Latino founders who will each receive $100,000 in cash awards. They’ll also receive hands-on support and mentorship from Googlers across the company, $100,000 in Google Cloud credits, and access to therapy sessions to use as needed for any support they may need emotionally and professionally.

These Latino Founders Fund recipients have created amazing businesses that are already making a significant impact. They are helping solve some of the country’s biggest problems, from providing accessible, personalized reproductive health support to helping college graduates get out of debt and creating a more equitable legal system for Americans. Meet some of the recipients below, and read the full list of this year’s awardees here.

  • Two women, one wearing a black shirt and one wearing a green shirt, sit side by side facing the camera in front of large green plants.

    Tanya Menendez and Pamela Martinez, cofounders of Snowball Wealth

  • A woman wearing a blue shirt stands next to a man sitting in a chair behind a laptop.

    Francisco Cornejo and Daniela Vega, cofounders of Storybook

  • A woman with long brown hair and wearing a black turtleneck smiles at the camera in front of a large green plant.

    Noelle Acosta, founder of Noula Health

  • A man wearing a gray suit stands with his arms crossed in front of a brick wall.

    Eric Alvarez, founder of Grapefruit Health

  • A woman with black hair smiles at the camera, wearing a black shirt.

    Ariana Abramson, founder of DivySci Software

  • A man wearing a gray shirt with "USMC" in blue letters looks at the camera, in front of a Spanish-style building.

    Clay Treska, cofounder of Family Proud

  • A woman with black hair sits angled towards the camera, wearing a pink blazer and top and blue jeans.

    Camille Padilla, founder of VODIUM

  • A man wearing a blue shirt and baseball cap leans against a stone column in a park.

    Eli Rivera, cofounder of The Way Out

  • A woman with brown hair over her shoulders smiles at camera, wearing a black shirt that says "People Clerk" in white letters.

    Camilla Lopez, founder of People Clerk

  • A man with dark hair, beard and mustache leans against a wall outside, wearing a light-colored button down shirt.

    Alejandro Harb, founder of Lena Health

We know having a robust network of support is critical to Latino founders’ success. That’s why we committed $1 million to supporting organizations that are dedicated to growing the Latino startup community. In the past few months, we connected founders across North and Latin America through our partnership with eMerge Americas. We teamed up with Visible Hands to launch VHLX, a new program to support Latino entrepreneurs at the earliest stages of their process; those founders received $10,000 in cash stipends from Google to help kickstart their ideas. And we recently wrapped our first Latinx Leaders Summit with Inicio Ventures, and will host a series of pitch competitions for aspiring entrepreneurs later this year.

We’ve seen firsthand what happens when we support underrepresented founders with funding and community. For example, over the past two years, Google for Startups has provided $10 million in cash awards to 126 Black founders in the U.S. through our global Black Founders Fund. I’ve had the privilege of working directly with these incredible founders, who have collectively gone on to raise over $75 million in follow-on funding. In addition to follow-on funding, many report that the fund allowed them to attract customers and hire new teammates.

I hope this funding and support will not only catalyze the growth of these 50 Latino-led startups, but also inspire other Latinos entrepreneurs to dream, create and innovate to showcase the talent of our community and change the course for their families and communities in the process.

Presentamos a los primeros 50 beneficiarios del Fondo de Fundadores Latinos

Desde que me uní a Google hace casi doce años, mi misión personal ha sido buscar nuevas formas para que Google brinde acceso y oportunidades a la comunidad latina. Más recientemente, me he centrado en cómo podemos proporcionar esto a la comunidad latina de empresas emergentes, donde obtener acceso a la financiación, el combustible necesario para hacer crecer sus empresas, es una lucha constante. Las empresas lideradas por latinos son el segmento de más rápido crecimiento de las pequeñas empresas de Estados Unidos, pero en conjunto solo reciben el 2 % del financiamiento total de capital de riesgo en Estados Unidos, a pesar de que representan el 20 % de la población del país.

Esta disparidad es la razón por la cual comprometimos $7 millones el año pasado para ayudar a los fundadores latinos a hacer crecer sus negocios y apoyar a las organizaciones que ya nutren comunidades de empresas emergentes dirigidas por latinos. Asignamos $5 millones de esa financiación a nuestro Fondo inaugural de Fundadores Latinos de Google for Startups y hoy en la Conferencia Anual de UnidosUS en San Antonio, anunciamos los 50 fundadores latinos que recibirán cada uno $100,000 en efectivo. También recibirán apoyo práctico y tutoría de Googlers (empleados de Google) en toda la empresa, $100,000 en créditos de Google Cloud y acceso a sesiones de terapia para usar según sea necesario para cualquier apoyo que puedan necesitar emocional y profesionalmente.

Estos beneficiarios del Fondo de Fundadores Latinos han creado negocios increíbles que ya están teniendo un impacto significativo. Están ayudando a resolver algunos de los problemas más grandes del país, desde brindar salud reproductiva accesible y personalizada, ayudar a los graduados universitarios a salir de deudas y crear un sistema legal más equitativo para los estadounidenses. Lee la lista completa de los galardonados de este año aquí.

Sabemos que tener una sólida red de apoyo es fundamental para el éxito de los fundadores latinos. Es por eso que comprometimos $1 millón para apoyar a organizaciones que se dedican a hacer crecer la comunidad latina de empresas emergentes. En los últimos meses, conectamos a fundadores de América del Norte y América Latina a través de nuestra asociación con eMerge Americas. Nos asociamos con Visible Hands para lanzar VHLX, un nuevo programa para apoyar a los empresarios latinos en las primeras etapas de su proceso; esos fundadores recibieron $10,000 en estipendios en efectivo de Google para ayudarlos a poner en marcha sus ideas. Y recientemente finalizamos nuestra primera Cumbre de Líderes Latinx con Inicio Ventures, y organizaremos una serie de concursos de lanzamiento para aspirantes a empresarios a finales de este año.

Hemos visto de primera mano lo que sucede cuando apoyamos a los fundadores subrepresentados con fondos y comunidad. Por ejemplo, en los últimos dos años, Google for Startups ha otorgado $10 millones en premios en efectivo a 126 fundadores afroamericanos en los Estados Unidos a través de nuestro Black Founders Fund. He tenido el privilegio de trabajar directamente con estos increíbles fundadores, quienes colectivamente recaudaron más de $75 millones en fondos de seguimiento. Además de la financiación de seguimiento, muchos informan que el fondo les permitió atraer clientes y contratar nuevos compañeros de equipo.

Espero que este financiamiento y apoyo no solo catalice el crecimiento de estas 50 nuevas empresas lideradas por latinos, sino que también inspire a otros empresarios latinos a soñar, crear e innovar para mostrar el talento de nuestra comunidad y cambiar el rumbo de sus familias y comunidades en el proceso.

Our commitment to Asia Pacific’s small businesses

Technology can help businesses grow — but only if the people who lead and work for those businesses have the right skills. Today, on Micro-, Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) Day, we’re reaffirming our commitment to Asia Pacific’s small businesses — and putting education and training at the center of our efforts to help them succeed and grow.

Since 2015, we’ve trained 8.5 million MSMEs across the region through our Grow with Google programs and partnerships. We stepped up these efforts when the global pandemic hit, and we’ve seen the impact of working more closely with governments and other businesses to close skills gaps and create opportunities. Our Saphan Digital program in Thailand has trained over 100,000 small businesses, while the Accelerate Vietnam Digital 4.0 initiative has trained 650,000 people. But we recognize there’s much more work ahead to ensure that MSMEs are prepared for longer-term economic and technological change.

Video presenting the story of Indonesian entrepreneur Ibu Ida and how taking her food business online helped her grow sales.
10:25

Over the next year and beyond, we’ll be deepening our existing programs to support small businesses and launching new ones — like Expand with Google in Japan, focusing on helping MSMEs build their capabilities in digital advertising and e-commerce. We’ll also be helping MSMEs find the skilled people they need by expanding access to Google Career Certificates, which develop in-demand skills like IT support, data analytics and user experience design. In partnership with learning institutions and nonprofits, we’re providing free scholarships for certificates in India, Indonesia and Singapore, and we’ll be offering the same opportunity in more countries soon — we’ve committed to providing over 250,000 scholarships across Asia Pacific in 2022.

Video presenting Yesha’s story from deciding to change her career and taking a Google Career Certificate course to finding a job soon after graduation.
10:25

To ensure that opportunities to learn new skills are equitable, we’ll continue to support nonprofits across the region. Since 2019, through our Google.org philanthropic arm, we’ve contributed over $11 million in grants that support underserved MSMEs. We have provided grant funding to Youth Business International to reach more than 180,000 entrepreneurs through its Rapid Response and Recovery Program and to The Asia Foundation working with its partners to train more than 225,000 people through the Go Digital ASEAN initiative, endorsed by the ASEAN Coordinating Committee on MSMEs.

Helping MSMEs in underserved parts of the region will continue to be a major priority — including $4 million in Google.org support for The Asia Foundation, which will expand Go Digital ASEAN with new training programs including green skills, cybersecurity and financial planning.

Video about three young entrepreneurs who received help from YBI's Rapid Response and Recovery Programme and sustained their business through the pandemic
10:25

Finally, we’ll keep playing our part to foster the next generation of businesses in Asia, through our Google for Startups programs, initiatives like the Women Founders Academy, and partnerships with governments like the ChangGoo program in Korea — which has helped 200 startups and created over 1,100 new jobs. Our developer programs — such as the Appscale Academy in India, a partnership with the MeitY Startup Hub — will continue to help app-makers (like health-technology startup Stamurai) grow globally.

Video presenting the story of Seojung Chang who, after attending a Google for Startups program, raised capital and achieved growth for her startup Jaranda in Korea.
10:25

Whether Asia Pacific’s entrepreneurs are long-established, or just starting out, we’re ready to help them adapt to change and thrive in the digital economy. And we look forward to celebrating their success.