Black History Month serves as a reminder to honor individual experiences and celebrate collective accomplishments. Beyond bridging wage gaps, fostering Black representation in tech is about creating inclusive experiences that empower marginalized communities. In the spirit of celebration, we shine the GA spotlight on four new AI tools by Black creators, embodying progress, equity, and empowerment in technology.
4 New AI Tools Made by Black Creators
AI continues to make its mark across industries with new levels of innovation and efficiency. Learning AI skills has become beneficial for entrepreneurs and professionals in today’s job market. Businesses are increasing their reliance on responsible AI-driven solutions and need more Black representation to lead the charge. As we celebrate Black History Month, we must give our flowers to the Black creators in the AI space, whose contributions are already creating a ripple effect in shaping the latest AI tools and trends and leading the way for future Black innovators in tech.
1. Yuty: Empowering Beauty Consumers
Founder: Simi Lindgren
Yuty harnesses generative AI powered by TensorFlow to cater to a diverse audience of beauty consumers. This tool empowers users to discover personalized beauty products through AI recommendations, promoting sustainability and reducing the need for in-person testing. Simi Lindgren’s creation represents a fusion of tech and beauty, making strides in inclusivity.
Year Founded: 2020
Industry Focus: Beauty and Fashion
Tech Skill in Play: Python Programming (TensorFlow)
Getting Started in Data: Facial recognition systems exhibit biases in accurately identifying individuals, with studies indicating elevated error rates for women, people of color, and older adults. This bias stems from imbalanced training data, predominantly featuring images of white males, resulting in diminished accuracy for underrepresented groups. Black and Brown technologists can address unintentional biases through diverse datasets, careful algorithm design, and rigorous testing for fairness in AI systems.
Inspired by Simi’s personalized beauty recommendations? The ability to effectively work with data is considered one of the top tech skills to learn in 2024. Understanding Python can help tackle technical tasks, ranging from data science and data analysis to web app development and more. Python is one of the easiest programming languages to learn.
Check out our Python Short Course if you’re curious about learning Python.
2. HairDays: Personalized Solutions for Hair Challenges
Founder: Dr. Tiffany St. Bernard
HairDays, led by biomedical engineer Dr. Tiffany St. Bernard, uses a scientific method to analyze hair and scalp conditions digitally. The AI, Layla, connects users with personalized strategies, combining innovation, science, health, and beauty. This tool represents a leap forward in personalized solutions for diverse hair types.
Year Founded: 2021
Industry Focus: Health and Beauty
Tech Skill in Play: UX Design
Getting Started in UX: As a minority, daily encounters with micro-aggressions and experienced oppression foster empathy and familiarity with the collective struggle. This ability to empathize is essential for UX designers, enabling them to create products that alleviate user challenges and enhance the user’s journey by understanding and connecting with their experiences.
UX design continues to be in high demand with new product developments and iterations. Tech design career paths vary from visual to user experience and product design.
If you’re a creative with an eye for visuals and user journeys, explore tech skills in product management or UX design to get a dose of new career possibilities.
3. CashEx: Affordable Money Transfers for African Migrants
Co-Founder: Kingsley Ezeani
CashEx addresses the high cost of money transfers for African migrants, utilizing Google Cloud’s Vision API for secure and cost-effective user identification. The platform ensures that families in Africa receive more funds for essential needs like food, health, and education. This tool exemplifies the intersection of finance, technology, and social impact.
Year Founded: 2022
Industry Focus: Financial Services
Tech Skill in Play: Software Engineering
Getting Started in Software Engineering: There are many types of software engineers, with Black talent helping shape the current (and future) landscape of technology and software engineering.
Women like Mary Jackson, the first Black woman engineer at NASA, paved the way for many to create a seat at the table — along with Gladys West, who developed the Global Positioning System (GPS). Their contributions helped establish the foundation for today’s Black innovators in tech and the creation of purpose-driven products like CashEx.
According to projections from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, an anticipated 22% growth in software engineering jobs is expected until 2029 across industries. The global developer population is projected to reach 28.7 million people by 2024, an increase of 3.2 million compared to 2020. Now is the best time to develop software engineering skills if you’re looking to either get ahead in your current job or spark a complete career change. Software engineering and AI will continue revolutionizing the workforce and the products we love.
A career in software engineering can inspire action in economic mobility, quality of life, DEI efforts, and more. CashEx represents the essence of purposeful action with technology.
Explore the umbrella of software engineering skills to bring something new to life.
4. Latimer AI: Inclusivity in Large Language Models
Founder: John Pasmore
Latimer AI introduces the Black GPT, an inclusive large language model embedding cultural and historical perspectives of Black and Brown people. Partnering with scholar Molefi Kete Asante, Latimer addresses biases in AI models by adding rich African American historical and cultural data. This innovation represents a significant step toward inclusivity in LLMs.
Year Founded: 2023
Industry Focus: Technology
Tech Skill in Play: Coding
Getting Started in Coding: AI large language models, trained on vast datasets, can inadvertently replicate biases from the training data, generating offensive or discriminatory content that reinforces stereotypes. Black and Brown coders dedicated to creating more equitable technologies can address unintentional biases through diverse datasets, careful algorithm design, and rigorous testing for fairness in AI systems. Everyone is learning to code as AI continues to evolve. Even celebrities like Will.i.am, Chris Bosh, and Serena Willams embrace the language of code.
Explore free coding classes to understand the basics of coding.
Celebrating Black History Month: Black in Tech
Black professionals are still underrepresented in the workforce, especially in the fastest-growing tech roles. According to Zipdo, in tech companies, Black people hold 7.4% of all jobs and just 5.5% of technical roles. The future of work and continued innovations in technology require more Black voices to shape new products in service to customers and consumers from diverse backgrounds.
We need more Black people in tech. At General Assembly, we offer flexible financing options and sponsorships for individuals who require financial assistance. We’re committed to breaking down the barriers hindering individual pathways to excellence.
Black in AI: Fast Career Tips for Black Professionals
Breaking into Tech
Attend networking events and engage with online communities to build connections and gain insights into the industry.
Leveling Up in Your Current Role
Seek mentorship opportunities within or outside your organization to gain guidance and insights for career advancement.
Always Be Learning
Embrace continuous learning through online courses and workshops to stay updated with evolving technologies and workforce dynamics.
Invest in New Skills
Explore General Assembly’s full-time bootcamp options and short courses to acquire new skills and stay competitive in the ever-evolving labor market.
Are you interested in celebrating Black History Month and receiving tailored career advice? Contact our Admissions team to learn more about how you can explore and support innovations that drive more diverse representation in the tech industry.