By John Kregler, StartOut For Gold Darr Hood (she/they), the call to entrepreneurship has always been present. Coming from a technology background with doctoral work in AI, Gold is a serial entrepreneur with a passion for effecting real change. …

By John Kregler, StartOut Madilynn A. Beck, MEd AMFT (she/her), is a powerhouse in the health and wellness industry. As the founder and CEO of The Better Spot, Madilynn’s mission is to create an on-demand wellness marketplace where practitioners and patients alike can get and deliver the care they need…

By John Kregler, StartOut Vinny Williams (he/him) had an unconventional path to becoming an entrepreneur. He grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio until he moved to Atlanta at the age of 17 to pursue a record deal. After a career in music, and then law enforcement, Vinny fell into entrepreneurship. Today…

By John Kregler, StartOut For folks like Elena Givens (she/her), entrepreneurship is an entryway to unlimited potential. Elena is a StartOut founder from Atlanta whose company, Healthcare Dollar, is the culmination of a long-term career in healthcare billing and a passion for helping people. Throughout her experiences, Elena’s discovered that…

By John Kregler, StartOut February is a time to celebrate the contributions and achievements of Black history makers. The StartOut community is enriched because of the work Black founders have put in to ensure their seat at the table is longstanding and meaningful. Over the years, we’ve told the stories…

By John Kregler, StartOut Brian Hecht (he/him) always dreamed of becoming a journalist but never let any door stay closed. After years of working in print and TV news, Brian felt the career path wasn’t an end all be all. With an innate entrepreneurial instinct, he worked on several startups…

By John Kregler, StartOut Our mission at StartOut is to “accelerate the growth of the LGBTQ+ community to drive its economic empowerment, building a world where every LGBTQ+ entrepreneur has equal access to lead, succeed, and shape the workforce of the future.” Every year, we leverage hundreds of strategic partnerships…

By John Kregler, StartOut Iyke Iwotor (he/him) is a Venture Analyst with Level Up Ventures, “a mission-driven investment vehicle created to close the wealth gap through investment in high-growth startups led by Black and Latino founders.” …

By John Kregler, StartOut Cohort 8 graduate Maca Baigorria (she/her) took Avocademy to the next level in 2022. The company is a career education program that helps people transition to the UX/UI design field. …