Intel’s $125 Million Diversity Equity Fund Invests in Minority and Female Entrepreneurs

Intel’s 300 million diversity initiative is in action! Intel announced their goal to increase diversity both at Intel and in tech significantly by 2020 a while back, and it seem like they’re keeping true to their word.

Intel formed a venture capital fund “to invest $125 million in technology companies with diverse founder or executive teams.” It’s no secret that Silicon Valley and the tech industry is extremely homogeneous. USA Today cites several examples:

A report in 2010 by CB Insights found that fewer than 1% of venture capital-backed Internet companies were founded by African Americans.

Babson College survey found that 2.7% of the 6,517 companies that received venture funding from 2011 to 2013 had a female CEO.

Alongside other stories about the tech industry being unfriendly or unsafe for diversity – like Ellen Pao’s fight for gender equality, the rareness of transfriendly jobs, bias towards women of color , among others – there’s no doubt that this is an important issue. The article continues by saying that Intel’s fund is a great step and really benefits everyone:

With high-tech companies appealing to an increasingly diverse and global marketplace, historically underrepresented groups are becoming key to future growth in the sector. And venture capitalists have begun to realize they risk losing touch with a majority of consumers and losing out on new ideas.

In addition to The Diversity Equity Fund, managed by Lisa Lambert, the article cites several other initiatives, including Comcast’s and Y Combinator’s:

Comcast Ventures, the cable and entertainment giant’s corporate venture arm, started the Catalyst fund in 2011 to invest in minority entrepreneurs who might not otherwise have access to capital.

The $20 million fund, a result of the merger of NBC Universal and Comcast, has made nine investments, most on the East Coast. Now with the addition of veteran technology executive Laurence “Lo” Toney who recently joined the fund in San Francisco, Catalyst is investing in minority entrepreneurs at the seed stage on the West Coast.

“The fact that Intel is also starting a fund further validates the vision Comcast had back in 2011 that there is a need for this type of fund to exist,” Toney said.

Leading technology incubator Y Combinator has made a substantial commitment to funding qualified minority and women led startups with an effort spearheaded by veteran Internet entrepreneur Michael Seibel who is African American.

Marlon Nichols, an African American partner with Intel’s new diversity fund, is forming an early-stage venture firm Cross Culture VC with Lady Gaga’s former manager Troy Carter. Charles Hudson, an African American partner with SoftTech VC, is starting his own firm to invest in startups.

The criteria for Intel investments (“Either a startup’s CEO or founder or at least three members of the senior management team must be a female or an underrepresented minority”) don’t necessarily mean the companies are diverse:

CareCloud was founded by Miami entrepreneur Albert Santalo. But he recently turned over the reins to a white male CEO. Another Latino executive is listed on the leadership team, but of six people who hold top management roles, four are white men and none are women. There are no women on the company’s board of directors either.

Even so, it seems like Intel is on the right track. The fund has made “four investments and has five investments partners, two of whom are women, two of whom are African Americans and two of whom are Asian American.” 2020 is looking pretty good.

(Images via screenshots from CNET)