| Hi, Agen. As venture funding to Black-founded U.S. startups plummeted last year, many areas that have in the past served as strong pillars for such investment saw even more dramatic declines in those numbers, Crunchbase data shows. They include Atlanta, Boston and the San Francisco Bay Area — all of which saw funding to Black-founded startups in 2023 fall even more than the 71% national drop. Plus, a once-decacorn files for bankruptcy protection, and how to add a generative AI innovation layer to your business. The Bay Area, Atlanta, Boston, New York and Los Angeles have traditionally been some of the larger markets for Black and minority entrepreneurship and startup investment, but Crunchbase data shows those regions saw dramatic declines in funding to Black-founded startups — sometimes even worse than the national decline. Thrasio, the largest “Amazon aggregator,” has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, marking a dramatic reversal for a startup that just a few years ago boasted a $10 billion valuation after raising $3.4 billion from investors. Basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal famously invested in Google’s Series A back in 1999, and has gone on to invest in an eclectic mix of startups since. But even Shaq got caught up endorsing ill-fated FTX, and he wasn’t alone among his celebrity peers. We found that stars who just a couple of years ago were hyping or investing in the crypto craze are backing fewer startups, promoting less, and mostly staying away from Web3. Reddit is finally ready to go public. The company is poised to be the first major venture-backed tech IPO out of the gate this year. Does this mark the beginning of an IPO upswing that could spark a new wave of exits from startups that have been waiting for signs of safety? Entrepreneur and investor John S. Kim offers his take on the Reddit IPO and what it means for the market. Companies in every sector know they need to add generative AI applications and frameworks to their tech stack this year — or get left behind, writes guest author Dan Kraemer, but with so many options, where do you even start? One of the best ways is to build a “GenAI innovation layer” into your tech stack, he argues. Here’s how. | 
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