By Emma Johnston
hamow.com
Black Ambition, founded by Pharrell Williams, has announced the 50 finalists in their competition, including Birmingham start-up TaxxWiz. the Black Ambition Prize. TaxxWiz, a previous Alabama Launchpad winner, will have the chance to win $1 million.
“We found out about the Black Ambition Prize competition through social media and decided to apply,” said Olumuyiwa Aladebumoye, COO, TaxxWiz. “It is cool that we are able to represent Alabama throughout the process since most of the companies are from the West Coast.”
Aladebumoye said TaxxWiz is “still in the start-up phase . . . so this money will help us grow and allow us to reach out to a wider audience.”
“If chosen, we will use the prize money to continue to develop the tax industry by empowering tax repairers with modernized software,” he added. “We also want to keep positively impacting communities through seminars and being able to simplify taxes.”
Black Ambition, launched in 2020, empowers and funds Black and Latinx entrepreneurs to achieve their dreams. The purpose is to bridge the gaps that many Black + LatinX companies face through competitions and prizes hosted by the nonprofit.
With over 1,000 applicants, only 250 were selected as semifinalists and out of the 250, the top 50 were selected as finalists. Semifinalists enter a three-month cohort where they get to experience mentorship, peer-to-peer learning, curated training + networking. During the three months, each entrepreneur is judged through supplemental questions and how they have grown.
Now in the final stage, the top 50 finalists will have access to pitch coaches as well as graphic designers who will assist in marketing and presentation. The finalists will be heading to a demo day at the Mighty Dream Forum on Tuesday, November 1 in Norfolk, VA where the winner will be announced Thursday, November 3.
Along with the $1 million grand prize, each venture will also be competing for smaller prizes that range from $25,000-250,000.
Birmingham, YOU can help TaxxWiz by voting for them in the Popular Vote award. Voting ends Friday, October 21 and the winner will be awarded $25,000. Click here to vote!
