Invest In Women x Pittsburgh is a partnership between Chloe Capital and Ascender, and supported by the Richard King Mellon Foundation, to help move capital to underrepresented founders in the Pittsburgh area.
[RELEASE] April, 19, 2022 – Pittsburgh, PA – Chloe Capital, a Movement-driven venture capital firm, has selected five women-led technology companies to participate in INVEST IN WOMEN x PITTSBURGH (chloecapital.com/pittsburgh) this Spring. This unique fundraising experience for underrepresented founders is in partnership with Ascender, a nonprofit incubator for Pittsburgh’s entrepreneurs, and supported by the Richard King Mellon Foundation.
Despite recent progress, a study by Boston Consulting Group shows that if men and women around the world were treated equally as entrepreneurs, our global economy would experience a $5 trillion boost.
To help move the needle, five women entrepreneurs from the Pittsburgh area have now been chosen to participate in INVEST IN WOMEN x PITTSBURGH. Each receives the opportunity to connect with leaders across industries, hear critical feedback on how to grow their businesses, and pitch for investments from Chloe Capital and the Firm’s community of impact investors. By the end of the program, Chloe Capital will make at least one investment in a company located in, or willing to relocate to, Allegheny or Westmoreland counties.
Investors and community members are invited to the Founder Showcase, which will take place April 27, 2022 at 5 p.m. (et) at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater, located at 5941 Penn Ave., Pittsburgh, PA.
Space is limited. RSVP > InvestInWomenPittsburgh.eventbrite.com
In addition to Chloe Capital, featured investors for INVEST IN WOMEN x PITTSBURGH include Sylvia Mah (Stella Impact Capital), Gabriela Isturiz (The Fund XX), Brandon Greer (Hubspot Ventures), Matt Harbaugh (Mountain State Capital), and Lu Zhang (Fusion Fund).
“Each investor has joined our Movement to Invest In Women by meeting the founders and exploring the investment potential of each company,” said Chloe Capital co-founder and partner, Kathryn Cartini. “On average, participants in a Chloe Capital program each go on to raise $2,000,000 within the year, catalyzed by visibility and introductions to our firm’s world-wide network.”
The founders selected to participate in INVEST IN WOMEN x PITTSBURGH are:
ALISON ALVAREZ
CEO & Co-Founder, BlastPoint
Allegheny County, Pittsburgh, PA
BlastPoint builds AI platforms for highly regulated industries so that they can better understand their customers and how to talk to them.
HOLLY ADAMS
CEO, Go Well Benefits
Philadelphia County, Philadelphia, PA
Go Well Benefits makes health insurance enrollment and underwriting faster and easier with an end-to-end solution that links employee, employer, broker and insurance carrier.
NEHAL BHOJAK
President & CEO, Lumis Corp.
Allegheny County, Pittsburgh, PA
Lumis is committed to democratizing healthcare education, and disrupting traditional clinical training through its immersive AR-based platform.
JJ XU
CEO, TalkMeUp
Allegheny County, Pittsburgh, PA
TalkMeUp uses AI to aid workforce communication development at the enterprise level. Employees use their mobile devices. Managers get measurable insights.
LAUREN GOLMBIEWSKI
CEO & Co-Founder, Voxable
Westmoreland County, New Kensington, PA
Voxable helps enterprise teams create and manage AI experiences at scale by automating conversational content creation, and streamlining collaboration.
“Each year Ascender impacts hundreds of entrepreneurs across many industries,” said Nadyli Nuñez, executive director at Ascender. “Now with the help of Chloe Capital and the Richard King Mellon Foundation we’re highlighting some of our region’s top performing, technology companies, that are also women-led. The talent is impressive.”
On top of hearing from the founders, INVEST IN WOMEN x PITTSBURGH will feature speaker Gabriella Gonzalez, program officer from the Richard King Mellon Foundation. Gonzalez is a senior thought leader in the future of work, workforce development, and economic development.
SaLisa Berrien, trustee and graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, and founder of COI Energy, will also share insight on being a Chloe Capital portfolio company. Berrien participated in INVEST IN WOMEN x CLIMATETECH in October 2021. She received a Chloe Capital investment following that program. Berrien has over 25 years of experience in the energy industry assisting clients with process improvements, energy efficiency, grid reliability, clean technology, and big data analytics.
Economic development has been a primary focus of the Richard King Mellon Foundation since its founding, and the Foundation’s new Strategic Plan includes a specific focus on entrepreneurship, as an essential pillar of its economic-development efforts. The Foundation’s plan notes that “small businesses are the backbone of our economy,” and the “Foundation’s investments aim to support efforts to allow entrepreneurship to thrive, to build the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, and to support efforts for under-represented groups to jumpstart or grow entrepreneurship efforts.” The Foundation’s funding of Chloe Capital’s “Invest in Women x Pittsburgh” initiative fits squarely within that plan.
Investors and community members are invited to the Founder Showcase, which will take place April 27, 2022 at 5 p.m. (et) at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater in Pittsburgh.
Space is limited. RSVP > InvestInWomenPittsburgh.eventbrite.com
Contact
Kathryn Cartini
Partner, Chloe Capital
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About Chloe Capital
Chloe Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in women-led technology companies. In addition to investing with a gender and diversity lens, Chloe Capital partners with universities, foundations and corporations to host programs that help catalyze fundraising efforts for underrepresented founders. This collaborative approach to early stage investing has resulted in millions raised. Today, More than 20,000 people around the world have joined Chloe Capital’s Movement to #InvestInWomen. ChloeCapital.com
About Ascender
About Ascender: Ascender, a 501(c)3 and vibrant community of innovators located in East Liberty, helps entrepreneurs start and build their companies by offering educational programming, mentorship, expert coaching, incubation, and a collaborative coworking space. Annually Ascender touches 500 entrepreneurs across many industries and works with both venture track and small businesses. Ascenderpgh.com
About the Richard King Mellon Foundation
Founded in 1947, the Richard King Mellon Foundation is the largest foundation in Southwestern Pennsylvania, and one of the 50 largest in the world. The Foundation’s 2020 year-end endowment was $3.1 billion, and its Trustees in 2021 disbursed $152 million in grants and Program Related Investments. The Foundation launched a new ten-year Strategic plan in 2021, focusing funding on six primary program areas: conversation, economic development, economic mobility, health and well-being, organizational effectiveness, and social-impact investing. RKMF.org