New York Venture Capital Firms Form Alliance to Support Diversity Initiatives
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Venture Capital: A New Chapter for New York City
Despite the numbers that may suggest otherwise, many venture capitalists are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. One such group is the Venture Access Alliance, a collaboration of 70 investors who have pledged to increase diversity in the startup ecosystem of New York City.
The Launch of Venture Access Alliance
On Wednesday, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) announced the launch of the Venture Access Alliance, as part of the city’s Venture Access NYC initiative. This initiative provides fellowships and a career program for diverse talent looking to enter venture capital.
The city’s mayor, Eric Adams, has emphasized the importance of increasing diversity in the startup ecosystem through his economic recovery plan. The plan focuses on helping underserved entrepreneurs gain greater access to capital.
The Significance of New York City
New York City is one of the largest tech ecosystems in the world. This public-private partnership could have a significant impact on the city’s startup landscape. The Venture Access Alliance encourages firms and investors to collect diversity data and increase the number of women and minorities hired and funded annually.
The Alliance aims to track progress and ask investors to fund programs that develop diverse talent in the city. Harlem Capital Partner Jarrid Tingle and Union Square Ventures Partner Fred Wilson, along with the Ford Foundation, Annenberg Foundation, and Tech:NYC, chair the Alliance.
"We want to do more, we want to do better," said Andrew Kimball, President & CEO of NYCEDC. "That means driving more investment to diverse founders, hiring more diverse staffers, mentoring, internships."
The Benefits of Diversity in Venture Capital
The NYCEDC released its latest diversity in venture capital report, highlighting data from Kauffman Fellows Research Center that found diverse founding teams have higher investor returns compared to all-white founding teams. Additionally, Cambridge Associates reported that new and emerging fund managers are consistently at the top of the asset class.
The Venture Alliance Takes Inspiration
The NYCEDC’s work is essential and timely, given the backlash against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the ecosystem. California SB 54 requires firms operating in the state to report their diversity breakdowns. Private organizations have taken to increasing diversity on their own terms.
The Venture Access Alliance takes inspiration from PledgeLA, launched by the Annenberg Foundation and the City of Los Angeles.
The Importance of Local Efforts
Local efforts like this matter, according to Andrew Kimball. He sees hope for an organization like this throughout the nation and hopes to "turbocharge" the effort by having it open in New York. "We’d love to see it expand beyond the five boroughs," he said.
Topics Covered:
- Diversity
- New York City
- Startups
- The New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC)
- Venture
- Venture Access Alliance
Author Information
- Dominic-Madori Davis is a senior venture capital and startup reporter at TechCrunch.
- You can contact her on Signal at +1 (646)-831-7565.
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