Project W's 2022 Impact Report

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Making an Impact

• With our accelerators

• Through the companies we accelerate

Building and Celebrating Community

• Connecting our alumnae

• Featuring community members in our newsletter

• Building community among women disrupting key industry sectors

• Partnering with mission-aligned organizations

• Celebrating the investors, mentors, and experts who contribute to our success

Looking Back on 2022

After more than two years of engaging over Zoom, we were back in person with the Project W community, old friends and new. We were reminded of the incomparable human experience of engaging person to person. Yet we came to appreciate the value of connecting virtually with founders, investors, and mentors around the country and the world. During the past two years, we were able to connect over 120 Black founders with mentors across the country and we brought together founders, investors, and mentors from over 17 states and 4 countries through virtual versions of our accelerators. In the years to come, we plan to build on what is best about virtual while embracing the experience of face-to-face collaboration and engagement.

Back together in 2022, we drilled down on the values that are core to our mission – impact, equity, and community. In the pages of this Report, you will learn how we and the members of our amazing community fostered all those values to empower women making change.

Making an Impact

Project W is all about making an impact: by helping women build great companies and advancing to the C-Suite; by connecting investors, mentors, experts, and entrepreneurs; and by supporting the innovators whose efforts will improve the lives of people and the health of our planet.

Making an impact with our accelerators

During 2022, we held three of our accelerators designed to provide female founders the tools, resources, and connections they need to build successful businesses.

Women Entrepreneurs Boot Camp

New York, May 2022

Women Entrepreneurs Boot Camp

Seattle, November 2022

Tech Equity Hub

July through September 2022

Our Accelerators by the Numbers

Founder Spotlights

Meghan Cano

Co-founder of Housing Base Founded in Texas, WEB NY, Tech Equity Hub

Meghan Cano is an alumna of three Project W programs. We first met Meghan at SXSW in March 2022 when she presented her company, Housing Base, to investors at Founded in Texas, a Project W collaboration with The Artemis Fund and HearstLab. Meghan was then selected to join our one-day Women Entrepreneurs Boot Camp in New York in May 2022, and most recently was a part of the three-month accelerator program, Tech Equity Hub.

Housing Base, the company Meghan founded with her husband, Juan Esteban Cano, provides a platform and app with granular and real-time affordable housing data in cities and states. With a two-sided market, Housing Base helps renters evaluate their options for affordable housing in their neighborhoods and enables local and state governments to manage and analyze data regarding their affordable housing inventory.

Meghan brings unique experience and expertise to solving the problem of providing adequate affordable housing. She was a key staff member responsible for creating the Homeless and Housing Services Program in

the State of Texas, a state-supported homeless grant, and she worked with the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation to focus on how to engage and promote public-private partnerships on a national level.

Through these three programs, Project W has had a firsthand view into how Meghan has applied her experience and expertise to rapidly grow Housing Base – from launch of the platform in May 2022 to securing $238,000 AAR under contract by the close of 2022. And this progress is just the beginning of what promises to be continued robust growth as Housing Base has ten cities and two states in its pipeline and ambitious plans to market its solution to additional governments across the United States. Most recently, Housing Base was featured as an Alpha startup at the Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal, and has now garnered international interest. Since working with Project W, the Housing Base team is excited to welcome their two new C-Suite additions to the team and that is just the beginning!

Deborah Gladney CEO & Co-Founder of WorkTorch Women Entrepreneurs Boot Camp, New York 2022

Deborah Gladney, an alumna of our 2022 Women Entrepreneurs Boot Camp (WEB) New York, founded WorkTorch with her sister, Angela Muhwezi-Hall, in April 2021. Inspired by the challenges faced by both employees and employers and the shifting work conditions during the pandemic, Deborah and Angela realized that employers were losing workers to “The Great Resignation” faster than they could hire them. So, for Deborah and Angela, building tools that focus on career development and talent retention was the key.

Deborah spent the day with us in New York on May 2 and was one of three founders in the cohort to participate in a master class with Dana Kanze of the London Business School. Based on the principles of Dana’s seminal research that found investors asked female founders “prevention” questions (about risk and challenges) and male founders “promotion” questions (about

opportunities and growth), Angela fielded questions about the supply/ demand imbalance in the service industry created by the pandemic. Putting the lessons learned from Dana’s research to work, Angela convincingly explained how her company’s tools solved that problem by creating career satisfaction for employees and dedicated workers for employers.

WEB is all about growth and, since May, WorkTorch has been on a growth trajectory. The company now has more than 50,000 service industry applicants on its roster and at least 1,000 interviews a month scheduled through its platform. In early November, WorkTorch closed a $2.2 million seed round led by Tenzing Capital with other investors that included Bloomberg Beta, MATH Venture Partners, Ruthless for Good Fund, and Graham & Walker, many of which were existing investors. This raise made Deborah and Angela, who are based in Kansas, among the few Black women in the Midwest to raise more than $1 million, and it will fuel continued growth as WorkTorch expands into several new cities, including Chicago, Denver, Dallas, and Atlanta.

Sarah Fraikue

Founder & CEO of EverMind, and alumna of the 2022 Tech Equity Hub

Alyssa Petersel Founder & CEO of MyWellbeing

Each founder in the Tech Equity Hub is paired with mentors who can help meet a need the founder has identified. It is always a thrill when a mentor and mentee make a special connection and that’s what happened in the case of Sarah Fraikue, alumna of the 2022 Tech Equity Hub and founder of EverMind, and Alyssa Petersel, founder of MyWellbeing, whom we first met when she participated in one of our partner programs, Point 25, in the Fall of 2017.

With a background in mental health and social services, Alyssa founded MyWellbeing to provide personalized mental health care to Millennial and Gen Z therapy-seekers. MyWellbeing’s online platform matches individuals with therapists throughout the United States. Sarah, who lives in Bremen, Germany, is building a company based in London that helps organizations with multicultural teams support their staffs’ wellbeing through access to multilingual online therapy and wellbeing workshops from international psychotherapists. Employees will be able to access support from psychotherapists who speak their preferred language and understand their culturally-specific needs. Still in the process of identifying an effective sales strategy, Sarah had the benefit of learning from Alyssa’s experience. And Alyssa had the opportunity to gain insights into the challenges of providing therapy across a wide range of cultures and languages.

Once again, we were reminded that, at its best, mentorship is a two-way street. Both mentor and mentee have something to give and to get in a great relationship. Here’s what Sarah and Alyssa had to say about their experiences.

“It was a tremendous honor to have had Alyssa as my mentor during the program. She was a perfect match. Her high level of industry knowledge really helped us tackle problems and learn from her experience. The relationship was so fruitful that we asked her to join our advisory board. I am very much looking forward to continuing learning from her and growing EverMind with her. Incredibly positive outcomes result from women supporting one another.” – Sarah Fraikue

“Sarah came to every one of our meetings with momentum, grit, and a relentless commitment to solve each new problem in front of her to support the mental health of as many people as possible. Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart, and Sarah has shown that she has the strength she needs to succeed. As a mentor, it’s powerful to be reminded of just how much you have learned, grown, and gained over the years. Over five years into growing MyWellbeing, I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to support a fellow female entrepreneur as talented as Sarah, who I look forward to cheering on in all her continued success to come.” – Alyssa Petersel

What our founders and faculty say

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I gained so many valuable insights at WEB – not only do I feel more prepared to build the roadmap for a successful Series A, but I also learned a great deal from the lessons shared with the other founders. WEB is structured with just the right amount of people to keep it intimate enough to learn from each other, alongside seasoned experts and investors. It’s a network I’m really looking forward to keeping in contact with.“

FROM WEB NY

Maya Nijhawan

Olivia Kim

FROM TECH EQUITY HUB

“Project W’s Tech Equity Hub has been the most effective accelerator to me as a female founder and woman of color. Each session was curated with speakers who were so thoughtful in their delivery and objectives.”

“The Tech Equity Hub was an amazing opportunity for me and my business. It helped me make relevant connections and gain a more grounded vision of what it is to be a woman of color in business. I am eternally grateful for having been given the chance to participate and meet so many amazing women!“

FROM WEB SEATTLE

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The Women Entrepreneurs Boot Camp gave me more concrete, actionable tools for being a better female founder than any other accelerator program I’ve been in. Both my entrepreneurial career and my company will undoubtedly benefit from the knowledge I gained in this program.“

Making an impact through the companies we accelerate

We measure impact not only by the number of companies we accelerate, but also by how our work amplifies the potential of these companies to improve the lives of people and the health of the planet.

The founders in our 2022 accelerators are driving change in some of most important aspects of our lives and our communities.

The companies in our 2022 cohorts are building solutions that ...

Diagnose and treat disease and physical and mental health conditions

Improve access to healthcare and patient outcomes

Increase longevity and mobility

Make education more accessible and improve educational outcomes

Promoting Equity

Female founders of color often lack the financial and other resources that majority founders enjoy – friends and family funding, an economic safety net to fall back on during the pre-revenue startup stage, and access to networks of influence. The lack of resources creates significant barriers for founders of color, impeding their ability to quit their day jobs and to devote themselves full-time to their businesses, and undermining their capacity to secure the resources they need to build their companies.

PROMOTING EQUITY THROUGH OUR PROGRAMMING

In 2022, we continued our effort to level the playing field. At the conclusion of our second Tech Equity Hub, we brought the nine Black and Latinx founders in the cohort to New York to make connections in the New York ecosystem, build relationships with each other, and pitch to a roomful of investors. Thanks to the generosity of our underwriting partner, Antares Capital, and of Davis Wright Tremaine, we awarded each founder a $5,000 cash grant.

PROMOTING EQUITY THROUGH COLLABORATION

Our mission to amplify the voices of underrepresented founders extends beyond our own programming. During 2022, we partnered with a number of like-minded organizations to amplify the voices of founders of color.

At SXSW, Project W sponsored the Springboard Enterprises Dolphin Tank, featuring Black and Latinx female founders who pitched their companies to an audience from around the country.

SXSW

1871 – CHICAGO

Another city, another Dolphin Tank. This one also featured Black and Latinx female founders, and we were proud to underwrite cash grants to each of the three presenting founders.

U.K. BLACK FOUNDERS MISSION TO NEW YORK

We were privileged to continue our collaboration with the British Consulate General New York and His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for North America and HM’s Consul General New York, Emma WadeSmith OBE, to welcome a mission of Black tech founders from the U.K. to New York.

1000 BLACK VOICES

Twelve of Project W’s most valued mentors participated in a virtual pitch practice to prepare the founders in the 1000 Black Voices mission for their visit to New York. We welcomed the founders to New York in early December at a reception and fireside chat in New York.

WOMEN OF COLOR CONNECTING (WOCCON)

Jill Johnson’s Women of Color Connecting is one of our favorite partners. We were honored to support WOCCON’s showcase of Black female founders in New York and Washington, D.C.

Building and Celebrating Community

The barriers are too high and the work too important to go it alone. We believe in the power of community to drive meaningful change, and our community continued to expand and deepen during 2022.

CONNECTING OUR ALUMNAE

We continue to build the network among the founders who have graduated from our accelerator programs and in 2022 had the opportunity to bring together our founders in Seattle, the Bay Area, and in Washington, D.C.

SAN FRANCISCO WASHINGTON, D.C.

FEATURING COMMUNITY MEMBERS IN OUR NEWSLETTER

Every month we share the stories of one or more of the remarkable investors, founders, or other members of the Project W community. These stories inspire, educate, and serve as a call to action.

Q&A With Sara Brand and Kerry Rupp of True Wealth Ventures

Sara Brand & Kerry Rupp

Q&A With Lorine Pendleton

Lorine Pendleton

Lead Fund Partner, Portfolia’s Rising America Funds I and II

Batul Fidaali, Habiba Marvi & Fareeda Zakir

General Partners, True Wealth Ventures Organizers of the Mashtal, A North American Business Expo: By Women, For Women

SaLisa Berrien

Founder & CEO, COI Energy

Q&A With

Mingzhang Zeng and Yi-Hsian Godfrey, CoFounders of Apiari

Ming Zeng & Yi-Hsian Godfrey

Co-founders, Apiari

Q&A with Blair Hirst

Blair Hirst

Founder, Digital Health Review

Q&A with Samira Qassim Q&A with Jessica Hendrix and Mandë Holford

Samira Quassim

Co-founder & Partner, Pink Salt Ventures

Jessica Hendrix & Mandë Holford

Co-founders, Killer Snails

Q&A with Nathalie Molina

Niño

Natalie Molina Niño

Co-founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Known Holdings

Innovating Voter Engagement

Jess Riegel

Co-founder & CEO, Participant

Q&A with Paula Boggs

Paula Boggs

Musician, Board Director, Veteran, General Counsel

Q&A with Laura Malcolm

Laura Malcolm

Founder & CEO, Give InKind

BUILDING COMMUNITY AMONG WOMEN DISRUPTING KEY INDUSTRY SECTORS

We organize and support our own networks of women innovating in and disrupting the industries that are driving our country’s economy.

FinTech Women – Bringing together women innovating in fintech to facilitate connections and opportunities, to illuminate thought leaders, and to ensure that women have a voice in the evolving financial services sector.

RiseTogether – Bringing together women in business and legal affairs in the media and entertainment industry to level the playing field for women and promote gender equity in the workplace.

WEST (Women in Energy, Sustainability, and Technology) – Fostering an influential network of professionals to facilitate connections and opportunities, identify sustainable solutions for the energy future, and advance the roles of women in the energy industry and climate tech spaces.

PARTNERING WITH MISSION-ALIGNED ORGANIZATIONS

CELEBRATING THE INVESTORS AND EXPERTS WHO CONTRIBUTE TO OUR SUCCESS

At the end of the day, the work we do and the impact we make would not be possible without the community of dozens of generous individuals who give their time and talent to empowering the founders in our network. We are deeply grateful for their commitment to gender parity in the startup ecosystem and for their year-over-year support of Project W.

Dylan Adams, Davis Wright Tremaine

Sarit Amir, JPMorgan

Allyse Bacharach, Investor

Elli Bahrmasel, Further Faster

Laura Baldwin, Golden Seeds

Amanda Beaudoin, Rethink Capital Partners

Nicole Bell, Curai Health

John Bernat, U.S. Bank

SaLisa Berrien, COI Energy Sara Brand, True Wealth Ventures

Melanie Broome, Davis Wright Tremaine

Lisa Burton, HearstLab

Cindy Caditz, Davis Wright Tremaine

Stephanie Campbell, Artemis Fund

Christy Cardenas, GRIT Ventures

Kate Cartini, Chloe Capital

Maryam Casbarro, Uber

Ramona Cedeno, FiBrick

Ginni Chen, DWT Surge

Greg Coleman, Sworkit Anna Consani, Goodwater Capital

Terence Craig, Investor

Tina Dai, Silverton Partners

Lisa Dayan, Davis Wright Tremaine

Janet DeFrino, Five Mile Advisors and 1843 Capital

Christiana DelloRusso, LRV Health

Katelyn Donnelly, Avalanche VC

Amanda Eakin, Sputnik ATX VC

Jane Eckels, Davis Wright Tremaine

Sahiti Enjeti, True Ventures

Leslie Feinzaig, Graham & Walker

Stephanie Fowler, Golden Seeds Jenevra Georgini, Spark + Sterling

Jessica Green, Insight Partners

Nicole Hamilton, Homeownering Julie Han, Amazon

Jessica Hauflaire, Digital Therapeutics Alliance

Diane Hickey, Diamond Chameleon Group

Deesha Hill, Citi

Alicia Castillo Holley, Wealthing

Sarah Holmes, Unshackled VC

Hannah Honeycutt, U.S. Bank

Ken Horenstein, Pack Ventures

Dan Hurley, SAP

Yasmin Ibrahim, Carnegie Crescent Consulting

Sarah Imbach, Investor

Lenore Kantor, Growth Warrior

Dana Kanze, London Business School

Leen Kawas, Propel Bio Partners

Anne Kennedy, MastersFund

Victoria Kennedy, Seed to Harvest Venture Studio

Karin Kidder, First Row Partners

Aylin Kim, Life Science Washington Institute

Olivia Kim, Gingerbread Capital

Jean Ku, Interfolio

Barbara Kurshan, Director & Educator

Elisa La Cava, Madrona Venture Group

Grace Legodi, The World Bank

Richard Leigh, SEIU 775 Benefits Group

Loretta Little, WRF Capital

Rebecca Lovell, Denali Founder Consulting

Shelly Malik, Davis Wright Tremaine

Oksana Mindyuk Malysheva, Sputnik ATX VC

Diana Melencio, XRC Labs

NanaYaa Mensah, VU Venture Partners

Geo Mirador, True Ventures

Tope Mitchell, Reflekt Me

Ethan Monreal-Jackson, Newtype Ventures

Gillian Muessig, MastersFund

Diana Murakhovskaya, Artemis Fund

Chase Nall, Outgo

Megna Narasimhan, Investor

Amy Nelson, Rethink Capital Partners

Lisa Nelson, Investor & Director

James Newell, Voyager Capital

Shijiro Ochirbat, Reinventure Capital

Alyssa Petersel, My Wellbeing

Jen Porto, Davis Wright Tremaine

Susan Preston, SeaChange Fund

Vani Rao, EdgeVenture Group

Jen Richard, Bonfire Ventures

Barbara Roberts, Investor & Educator

Eastin Rossell, HearstLab

Laura Rowson, Salesforce Ventures

Bahareh Samanian, Bahareh Legal

Eva Sasson, Square and Primera Impact

Jennifer Savage, Illuminate Capital

Elsa Sepulveda, MATH Venture Partners

Sumeet Shah, Swiftarc Ventures

Shashi Srikantan, Level Up Ventures

Marcus Stroud, TXV Partners

Dan Szabo, Davis Wright Tremaine

Umu Tafisi, Lending Club

David True, Pagility

Peggy Wallace, Golden Seeds

Martina Welkhoff, WXR Fund

Rebecca Williams, Story Coach

Kirby Winfield, Ascend VC Lacey Wisdom, Protocol Labs

Luke Wippler, U.S. Bank

Amina Yemusah, Sector

Accolades

While the privilege of working with the Project W community of founders, investors, experts, and advisors is reward enough, we are honored and humbled to see our work recognized.

What’s Next?

2023 promises to be even more impactful as we build relationships with new partners, expand the reach of our programming, and engage with an ever-growing network of founders, investors, and experts. Here’s some of what is in store in the coming year.

SXSW March

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Founded in Texas with the Artemis Fund and HearstLab

Our Project W social

A dinner for women VCs WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS BOOT CAMP IN SAN FRANCISCO May TECH EQUITY HUB July through September WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS BOOT CAMP IN NEW YORK

Fall IN STEALTH MODE – NEW PROGRAMMING

Building the Future

As we turn the page on another year, we are reminded of why we do this work. We are inspired by the founders with whom we work. Their creativity, resilience, and commitment to the wellbeing of people and planet will make the world a better place. We are grateful for the generosity of the investors and experts who year after year give of their time and talent. Their gifts of expertise, wisdom, and connections propel the progress of our founders. And we are privileged to stand alongside our many corporate partners and community collaborators that are creating a corporate ecosystem that is more inclusive, equitable, and impactful. Together, we will continue to build the future we all want to see.

With much gratitude, THE PROJECT W TEAM

Be Part of the Change

Lynn Loacker

Managing Director, Project W

Emily Baum

Program Director, Project W

Molly Klein

Director of Community Engagement, Project W, and Chief Marketing Officer, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

Tanea Foglia

Director of Project W’s Tech Equity Hub and Director of Practice Management, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

Gwen Reyes

Project W Events Manager

For information contact Emily Baum at emilybaum@dwt.com