1. Home
  2. Discover
  3. News
  4. GeekWire
  5. Seattle mayor encourages companies to hire people of color at inaugural Black Tech Night

Seattle mayor encourages companies to hire people of color at inaugural Black Tech Night

ADVERTISEMENT

TODAY'S TOP STORIES

Tech companies can benefit from hiring Black employees because of the grit they bring, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell said at the inaugural Black Tech Night in downtown Seattle Thursday.

  • "I looked at what they had to do to achieve their levels of success — the impediments they had to overcome," Harrell said of people of color that he appointed as civic leaders. "I want that kind of talent around me."

  • The goal of Black Tech Night is to be a monthly networking hub for Black people with corporate tech jobs to network and share experiences, said Sierra-Leone Jones, founder and CEO of A Space Inside, which hosted the event. Read more. 

  • Even as the quantity and variety of tech jobs has grown over the past two decades, “the technology workforce has not evolved to reflect the makeup of the American workforce,” noted a McKinsey report published this month. Above, from left: Google Cloud Senior Engineer Abuna Demoz; F5 Senior Manager Carl Mosby; Zillow Diversity & Inclusion Manager Makeda Hope-Crichlow; and Harrell.

Tech Moves:

Bellevue, Wash.-based software engineering bootcamp operator Coding Dojo has been acquired by Perdoceo, a publicly traded owner of online academic institutions.

  • The deal includes an initial cash payment of $52.8 million. Read more. 

Inspired by a problem she helped address at her family’s business in India, Priyansha Bagaria founded Loopr, a startup that offers manufacturing firms edge-based software to aid production and compliance. 

  • Part of Loopr’s mission is to provide tech opportunities for women from disadvantaged backgrounds. Read more. 

Seattle-based Dué Cucina this week announced a $2.5 million investment to help the company expand its fast-casual pasta model beyond Washington state. 

  • The company is led by two best friends who grew up in Italy and its CEO is a former Amazon senior project manager. Read more. 

Another new report is linking Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to a potential bid to buy the NFL’s Washington Commanders.

  • The Washington Post reported Thursday that Bezos has hired investment firm Allen & Company to kick the tires on the football team. The firm is prominent in transactions involving professional sports franchises and handled the two most recent sales of NFL franchises, involving the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos. Read more. 

New opportunities for investment in the gaming industry are opening in fields such as VR, AR, and the metaverse, as well as the potential role of generative AI in game development.

  • That’s one takeaway from a report highlighting trends and predictions for how VC investments in video games will proceed this year. Read more.
Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend. — GeekWire managing editor Taylor Soper, taylor@geekwire.com.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
Evening MBA applications due April 11th

Wondering if an MBA is for you? Attend our Evening MBA Shadow Night on March 1st and discover firsthand what our program can offer you. You’ll spend the evening with current students, sit in on a class, and have an opportunity to speak with the MBA Admissions team.

Don’t miss your chance to be a part of one of the top-ranked MBA programs in the nation! Register today.
Copyright © 2023 GeekWire LLC, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you opted to receive emails from GeekWire LLC.
 
Our mailing address is:
GeekWire LLC
123 NW 36th St, Suite 203
Seattle, WA 98107
 

Key phrases

Google Cloud Senior Engineer inaugural Black Tech Night TOP STORIES Tech companies Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell monthly networking hub A Space Inside past two decades key personnel news online academic institutions initial cash payment corporate tech jobs

Older messages

Former Amazon manager leads fast-growing, tech-fueled pasta restaurant chain

Thursday, February 23, 2023

Reimagining Seattle's downtown | Latest startup fundings | Quantum news bits ADVERTISEMENT GeekWire SPONSOR MESSAGE: Nominations are open for the 2023 GeekWire Awards: Submit nominations now for

GeekWire Mid-Week Update

Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Read the top tech stories so far this week from GeekWire Top stories so far this week Redfin and Zillow Group financial reports reveal broader housing market trends The latest financial reports from

Downtown dreams: 10 ideas to make Seattle’s core more vibrant | Amazon closes $3.9B One Medical acquisition

Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Microsoft expands AI chatbot to mobile apps | Seattle passes caste discrimination law ADVERTISEMENT GeekWire SPONSOR MESSAGE: Nominations are open for the 2023 GeekWire Awards: Submit nominations now

GeekWire Awards: Submit Community Nominations, Purchase Table Sponsorships

Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Learn more about the 2023 GeekWire Awards today! The GeekWire Awards return May 18! Nominate companies, entrepreneurs and innovations across more than a dozen categories, including Workplace of the

Microsoft inks deal with Nintendo and NVIDIA as it defends pending Activision deal

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

Amazon rolls out new van branding | Washington tries again for official state dinosaur ADVERTISEMENT GeekWire SPONSOR MESSAGE: Nominations are open for the 2023 GeekWire Awards: Submit nominations now

Creator funds are even more bullshit than we realized

Thursday, March 23, 2023

PLUS: How Matt Navarra turned his marketing newsletter into a six-figure business ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

What A Day: D.A.-break

Thursday, March 23, 2023

We're getting whiplash with all of these legal updates someone please indict this man already. Wednesday, March 22, 2023 BY JULIA CLAIRE & CROOKED MEDIA - Rep. John Joyce (R-PA) describing

Federal Reserve: Let them eat higher rates

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Plus, gang violence paralyzes Haiti. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

GeekWire Mid-Week Update

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Read the top tech stories so far this week from GeekWire Top stories so far this week Amazon is laying off another 9000 employees — read the CEO's memo Amazon is cutting 9000 jobs over the next few

The Manhattan Grand Jury Keeps Everyone Guessing About Trump

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Columns and commentary on news, politics, business, and technology from the Intelligencer team. Intelligencer Stay informed about business, politics, technology, and where they intersect. Subscribe now

Your Thursday Briefing: U.S. raises interest rates

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Also, China and Russia grow closer and the US waits for news of a possible Donald Trump indictment. View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story Marquee Ad Morning Briefing, Asia Pacific

Introducing ‘Blackballed,’ a New Narrative Podcast

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

View in your browser Twitter Facebook Instagram Share | Subscribe The Ringer In the March 22 newsletter: Welcome to a special edition of the newsletter dedicated to our new narrative podcast,

Angels in the Infield

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Baseball's Unicorn Moment Wednesday, March 22, 2023 - The Day's Most Fascinating News from Dave Pell NextDraft Logo Current Edition About NextDraft Wednesday, March 22, 2023 Share Edition 1

Seattle business leaders want city to suspend taxes | Amazon shutting down DPReview

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

GeekWire Awards finalists revealed | UW students show off VR and AR projects ADVERTISEMENT GeekWire SPONSOR MESSAGE: Unique & Urban Venue for Weddings, Conferences and Meetings: Plan your event at

☕ Supply and try again

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

What ever happened to all those “supply-chain issues”? March 22, 2023 Retail Brew Hello, hello. And shout-out to Fruit Roll-Ups, which amid the Fruit Roll-Ups and ice cream trend, just went viral once