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Stephanie Dinkins is merging AI and art for an exhibition in Brooklyn, NY. An “artist by birth,” Dinkins began with a display of her photography from a trip to Central America — a trip prompted by her interest in learning Spanish. This exhibit, held in Staten Island, would become her first. Fast forward to 2025, and she has launched an exhibit that is merging art and AI with the goal of creating a more equitable future. Dinkins told AFROTECH™ in an interview that she’s always been drawn to technology, and in 2014 a pivotal moment pushed her to deeply explore how the future is being shaped. She witnessed a humanoid robot on YouTube, called Bina48, being interviewed by reporters. The technology was launched by Hanson Robotics four years earlier based primarily on the personality and appearance of Bina Aspen Rothblatt, a Black woman, the company website mentioned. Dinkins reached out to the company, which permitted her to talk to the robot that was being trained through conversations...
Lloyd understood the importance of being a student of the game when he entered the music industry as a child. Industry Journey The R&B crooner is known for hit songs such as “You,” his “biggest earned streamed song.” He spent a lot of time in the studio learning from those who paved the way such as Dallas Austin, Gerald Busby, Tricky Stewart, as well as Joyce Irby, a mentor of his who signed him to Atlanta-based teen pop group N-Toon in 1997 when he was just 10 years old, noted Foxy 107.1/104.3. “She basically just poured a lot of time and love into me so that I wouldn’t make kinda the same pitfalls in the beginning. So by the time I was 18 years old, I was really headstrong. I knew exactly what I wanted. I knew exactly how to find my sound, and I wasn’t gonna let anybody tell me what I already knew, “ Lloyd said following a performance on the Coca-Cola Stage at the Convention Center during the 2025 Essence Festival of Culture, held in his hometown of New Orleans, LA. Photo Credit:...
Be a part of the AI revolution. AI Edge Virtual Summit Whether you are a creative leaning into AI for content creation, a marketing lead leveraging it for fresh ideas, or a founder looking to make an industry more efficient, AI Edge is your next step forward. This free virtual summit, to be held on Aug. 8, will connect you with top tools to become more efficient as well as offer firsthand insights from leading AI adopters and industry experts including Alicia Lyttle ( CEO and co-founder at AI InnoVision), Vanessa Schneider (head of marketing at Descript), and more. Programming will include: How to Build Your Own Custom GPT with Alicia Lyttle How to Automate Your Daily Tasks with Zapier without Coding Experience Create Visuals at Scale Using Adobe Firefly How to Automate Content Creation with AI with Descript Scale Communication and Marketing with HeyGen Mastering AI-Powered Research with Perplexity View this post on Instagram A post shared by AFROTECH (@afro.tech) A survey of...
Tech investor Marc Andreessen, co-founder of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, warned that universities will “pay the price” for promoting diversity and allegedly discriminating against supporters of President Donald Trump , according to screenshots of chat messages reviewed by The Washington Post. During a May 3, 2025, WhatsApp chat with White House officials and tech leaders, Andreessen reportedly criticized DEI and immigration policies after being invited by moderator Sriram Krishnan, a White House senior policy adviser on AI, to counter a comment about their impact on economic growth . The outlet also noted that Krishnan had created the group chat at the time he was working at Andreessen’s firm. The group chat, formed in 2023 before Trump’s current term, connects investors and experts with diverse political views interested in open AI development. In addition to Andreessen and Krishnan, members include White House AI adviser Dean Ball, Meta’s chief AI scientist Yann...
Praxis Labs has been acquired. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, the company was co-founded by AFROTECH™ Future 50 honoree Elise Smith and launched as an “immersive practice-based platform that drives inclusive, engaged, and higher-performing teams” powered by AI. Praxis Labs’ product offerings are Pivotal Practice, which helps managers to improve their critical human skills, and Pivotal Experiences, 15-30-minute perspective-taking simulations intended to increase empathy and provide a practice ground for workplace scenarios, its website mentions. TechCrunch notes the company’s client pool includes eBay, Zoom, Amazon, Google, and Target. “For me, it’s how do we use technology to help us become even better humans, to help us be able to give feedback across differences, to navigate difficult conversations, to provide performance feedback and expectations with accountability and care in a way that actually serves us all better, that creates more value for everyone, doesn’t cause harm,”...
After being laid off from Google, DeMarcus Edwards decided to become the founder of an AI company. The Howard University alumni, with both a master’s and Ph.D. degree in computer science, has completed residencies at Netflix, Apple, Meta, and Google X in order to gain industry experience around adversarial machine learning, per The Dig at Howard University . This field is focused on manipulating a machine learning system through malicious inputs to attack or disrupt their function, according to Tech Target. DARE Labs It was ultimately Edwards’ role at Google, tasked with creating an AI-assisted exoskeleton alongside teammates, that would spark his transition to becoming a founder. He was laid off from the tech company and bootstrapped his own defense-tech startup, Atlanta-based DARE Labs, alongside his best friend Branford Rogers in April 2023 . Within this area of work, Edwards also has received guidance from Danda B. Rawat, Ph.D., his mentor and the associate dean for Research &...
Dr. Valerie Camille Jones Ford, an educator with over 25 years of dedicated service, was inducted into the National Teachers Hall of Fame on June 20, becoming only the sixth Black woman to receive the honor. The induction joins a long list of accolades, including the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching, recognition in the U.S. Congressional Record by the late Rep. John Lewis, and multiple honors from President Barack Obama for her work advancing equity and excellence in education. As a Black female leader in STEM education , Jones Ford is committed to using her platform to inspire underrepresented students to pursue similar paths. “I’m incredibly proud to be among such amazing educators, but it lets me know there’s still work to be done as far as bringing recognition, because I know there are so many teachers of color who deserve this platform,” Jones Ford told AFROTECH™. She said that she wanted to use her platform to share her experience and to bring...
Entrepreneur Mark Cuban believes AI is not only the future but will pave the way for a feat that has never been reached by a person before: the world’s first trillionaire. Cuban stated on the “High Performance” podcast that while every technological wave, from PCs to 5G, has brought forth innovation , AI surpasses them all. “We haven’t seen the best or the craziest of what it’s going to be able to do, and not only do I think it’ll create a trillionaire but it could be just one dude in a basement. That’s how crazy it could be,” he said. Cuban is a serial investor who is embracing artificial intelligence in his daily life. He said AI technology has been helpful for the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks. “For the Mavs and for other businesses, we’re using all the new text-to-video stuff where you can just say ‘show me a guy carrying a rugby ball and that drop kicks it into a basketball basket,’ and it’ll give you 10 seconds of that in a minute. Just being able to be creative, whether it’s from a...
Microsoft is laying off approximately 9,000 employees, impacting less than 4% of its global workforce. On Wednesday, July 2, 2025, the second day of its 2026 fiscal year, the tech giant confirmed the move to CNBC via email, stating it will “continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company and teams for success in a dynamic marketplace.” Microsoft — which employed 228,000 people worldwide as of June 2024 — has conducted multiple rounds of layoffs in recent years, including letting 10,000 employees go in 2023. In January 2025, the company reduced its headcount by less than 1% based on performance. AFROTECH™ also reported that in May it laid off around 6,000 employees — roughly 3% of its global workforce. And the company cut at least 300 more in June. A source familiar with the matter told CNBC that, like with the May layoffs, Microsoft is aiming to streamline its organizational structure by reducing the layers of management between individual...
Mega-producer Timbaland has reaffirmed his commitment to artificial intelligence. Stage Zero and TaTa Timbaland is taking greater ownership in the advancement of artificial intelligence. The Grammy Award winner launched the AI-focused entertainment company Stage Zero in partnership with Zayd Portillo, his creative partner, and film producer Rocky Mudaliar, as reported by Rolling Stone. The label has also “ signed ” its first AI-generated “artist,” TaTa. Timbaland says TaTa is not an avatar or character, drawing a clear boundary that he believes she is “a living, learning, autonomous music artist built with AI,” according to Music Worldwide. “TaTa is the start of something bigger. She’s the first artist of a new generation. A-Pop is the next cultural evolution, and TaTa is its first icon,” Timbaland told the outlet. Partnership with Suno During the 2023 AFROTECH™ Conference , the rapper stated that AI should not only be embraced but that the community should also be at the forefront...
These founders are leaning into AI to help patients combat their medical bills. Avelis Health Founded in February 2025 by Angel Onuoha (CEO) and Ahmad Shehu (chief technology officer), Avelis Health employs AI agents to find errors, audit, and negotiate medical bills, which can help lead to direct savings as well as prevent rising premiums and less favorable coverage. Onuoha shares that its inception derived from an injury that left him with piling medical debt. “I’ve dealt with a chronic knee injury for the past decade and had multiple surgeries on my right knee. What inspired me to start Avelis was having to fight down over $250K of inflated hospital bills as a result of these procedures,” he mentioned in an email to AFROTECH™. “If I was struggling with this system, I knew millions of other Americans were facing the same problem without the resources to fight back. The medical billing system is broken, 100 million Americans have medical debt, and 50-80% of bills have errors in...
For CeD Mixon, balancing user-centered design with data-driven product strategy is core to his approach. As a seasoned design leader, he collaborates closely with product managers, VPs, and cross-functional teams to keep the end goal sharply focused on the user. At AFROTECH™ Conference 2024 , Mixon shared actionable insights on when to lead with design thinking and when to lean into product-led growth. The session offered practical frameworks to help engineers, designers, and solution architects align product development with both user experience and business goals. With over a decade of experience scaling companies from small startups to global platforms impacting millions, Mixon reflected on entering the tech industry at a time when he was often the only Black person in predominantly white spaces. Purchase your ticket to AFROTECH™ Conference 2025 now! View this post on Instagram A post shared by AFROTECH™ Conference (@afrotech.conference) “In the beginning, I wasn’t that...
The NAACP plans to sue Elon Musk ‘s Memphis, TN-based AI company, xAI, over concerns about air pollution stemming from a supercomputer facility allegedly operating gas turbines without proper permits. Represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), the NAACP filed its legal challenge on Tuesday as the Shelby County Health Department (SCHD) reviews xAI’s permit application, according to The Associated Press. Activists and opponents say the facility is polluting predominantly Black neighborhoods in South Memphis. The NAACP sent a letter to the SCHD and Memphis Light, Gas, and Water on May 29, demanding an emergency order to halt xAI’s operations or, at the very least, cite the company for violating clean air standards, AFROTECH™ previously reported. “While data centers are becoming more prevalent across the country, there is a growing need to guarantee transparency regarding environmental and climate concerns, the burden these centers have on communities, and ensuring...
Three historically Black colleges and universities ( HBCUs ) in Mississippi will benefit from a $9.1 million higher education grant the state received to expand artificial intelligence (AI) education , workforce training, and entrepreneurship. According to WJTV 12 News, on June 12, 2025, Governor Tate Reeves announced the grants through the Mississippi AI Talent Accelerator Program (MAI-TAP), aimed at strengthening the state’s workforce and economic future. In addition to the state support, each institution will seek private funding and resources to maximize impact. “This is another bold step forward for Mississippi,” Reeves said. “We’re not just preparing for the future – we’re building it. This investment will help to ensure that Mississippians are equipped with the skills needed to thrive in a rapidly evolving digital economy.” Administered by AccelerateMS, Jackson State University (JSU) in Jackson received $1.3 million to launch the Executive On Roster (XOR) initiative, which...
Disney and NBCUniversal have joined forces to take legal action against Midjourney, accusing the generative artificial intelligence (AI) company of copyright infringement for allegedly producing “hundreds, if not thousands” of unauthorized AI-generated images on its website. The companies’ lawsuit , filed on Wednesday, June 11, 2025, in Los Angeles, CA, includes examples of alleged infringements featuring characters from Marvel, “Star Wars,” Disney’s “Frozen,” “The Simpsons,” Pixar’s “Toy Story” and “Cars,” DreamWorks’ “How to Train Your Dragon,” and Universal’s “Shrek” and “Despicable Me” franchises, according to Variety. “By helping itself to Plaintiffs’ copyrighted works, and then distributing images (and soon videos) that blatantly incorporate and copy Disney’s and Universal’s famous characters — without investing a penny in their creation — Midjourney is the quintessential copyright free-rider and a bottomless pit of plagiarism,” the lawsuit states. The complaint further states...