Venture capital has a diversity problem . BLCK VC , a new organization founded by Storm Ventures associate Frederik Groce and NEA associate Sydney Sykes to connect, engage and advance black venture capitalists, is ready for a new era in the industry. Their mission: Turn 200 black investors into 400 black investors by 2024. “We think of ourselves as an organization formed by black VCs for blacks VCs to increase the representation of black investors,” Sykes told TechCrunch. “You can look around and say well ‘I know five black VCs,’ but you can also say this firm does not have a single black VC, they may not even have a single underrepresented minority … We want to make firms reckon with the fact that there is a racial diversity problem; there is a lack of black VCs and every firm should really care about it.” BLCK VC has been at work since the beginning of 2018, building and expanding a network of black investors in the San Francisco area, Los Angeles and New York. They seek to provide a...
Amazon today launched an Alexa app for Windows 10 PCs on the Microsoft Store. The voice application allows PC owners to speak to Alexa to set reminders, timers, alarms; create lists and to-dos; track their calendar appointments; get news, weather and other information; play music; listen to podcasts and audiobooks; control the smart home, and more.
The app is another way that Alexa is being unhitched from Echo speakers and other devices that generally stay in the home. Similar to the Alexa app for mobile devices, the Windows 10 app means you can use Alexa when you’re traveling for access to content and information, as well as to do things like lock your doors or check your security cameras, for example.
The app also offers access to tens of thousands of Alexa skills, says Amazon.
However, some features – including video, communications, Spotify and Pandora – are not supported on the Alexa app for Windows 10 at launch.
The app’s arrival comes shortly after Amazon and Microsoft opened up the Alexa-Cortana integration into public preview, which lets customers call up Cortana through their Echo devices and enable Amazon’s Alexa on Windows 10 devices and on Harman Kardon Invoke speakers.
Some PCs are designated as “Alexa Built-In,” meaning they’re already tuned for Alexa and you’ll be able to speak to Alexa hands-free. These include several PCs form Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, and Lenovo.
The Alexa app is available for Windows 10 PCs in the US, UK, and Germany, and will be coming to more locations in 2019.
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