Built for visibility
Media coverage of Founderland’s mission, programmes, and the remarkable women in our community.
Founderland awards the Q2 2026 Forward Grant to Prudence Mafuta Persson and Manje Health, recognising a cross-border healthcare payments platform enabling diaspora families to pay African healthcare providers directly and accelerate access to care
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Founderland awards the Q1 2026 Forward Grant to Ruth Ogbevire and PalmPro, recognising a novel enzyme solution increasing oil extraction yields while reducing waste, emissions, and pressure on agricultural land.
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Founderland awards the Q4 2025 Forward Grant to Mary-Brenda Akoda and GenScan AI, recognising a breakthrough AI solution reducing MRI scan times by up to 90%.
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Founderland, formerly Tech in Colour, was shortlisted at the Kyiv International Advertising Festival in the Positive Change – Non-Profit / Design category. In collaboration with R/GA, the rebrand centered on building a place of belonging for women of colour founders across Europe. The flexible identity system—rooted in individuality, community, and visibility—led to a 268% spike in founder applications, a 10× increase in LinkedIn followers, and $700K in Google.org funding.
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Founderland’s PAM—built with R/GA EMEA—was shortlisted in the 2024 Campaign Tech Awards under Best Use of AI . The tool creates a safe, secure online space for women of colour founders across Europe to rehearse investor pitches and receive instant, personalised feedback on delivery, slides, and content—scaling investor-readiness beyond the high-touch Compass accelerator.
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Founderland’s PAM, developed with R/GA EMEA, was shortlisted at the 2024 ADC Annual Awards in the Future Impact / Design category. Built for women of colour founders, PAM is an AI-powered tool that offers a safe space to rehearse pitches and get real-time, personalized feedback, scaling access to investor readiness across Europe.
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Founderland’s PAM, developed with R/GA EMEA, was honored at the 2025 ADC Annual Awards with a Bronze Cube in the Artificial Intelligence category. The AI-powered mentor offers women of colour founders a private, supportive space to rehearse investor pitches, receiving personalized feedback on delivery, slide content, and structure. With less than 0.5% of VC funding going to women of colour, PAM significantly expands access to VC readiness beyond Founderland’s in-person Compass program
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Founderland’s award‑winning AI tool, PAM, offers women of color founders a private, safe space to rehearse and perfect their investor pitches with instant, personalized feedback on delivery, slide design, and content. Developed with R/GA and shortlisted in Creative Review’s Annual Awards, PAM helps scale Founderland’s impact beyond its in-person Compass accelerator—supporting thousands across Europe
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BBC News features Dr Fiona Pathiraja, a Founderland member and investor at Crista Galli Ventures, in a story spotlighting the rise of femtech startups using menstrual blood to improve women's health. She shares insights on the scientific breakthroughs, investment potential, and societal shifts driving this emerging sector.
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Founderland member Cynthia Mensah-Neglokpe joins the Women Authors of Achievement podcast for a live recording in Berlin, where she shares how she transformed her creative passion into two impactful ventures: Clicqui , a community platform for women, and KORE , a boutique strength studio. In this inspiring conversation, she opens up about entrepreneurship, the power of community, and what it means to build businesses rooted in purpose and joy.
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Dr Youmna Mouhamad, Founder and CEO of Nyfasi, is profiled as an Enterprise Fellow in the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Hub. She’s building innovation in the afro-hair care sector with Myana Naturals , a specialized applicator device designed to ease the tedious and painful process of detangling and conditioning tightly curled hair. Focused on empowering Black women, her UK-based venture aims to reduce conditioner application time (often 20+ minutes) and celebrate natural beauty, with plans to roll out
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Noam Gerstein, founder of The Bina School and a Founderland community member, shares her bold vision for the future of education. She discusses how Bina blends digital-first learning with social-emotional development, and why small class sizes, well-supported educators, and personalized growth plans are essential for today’s young learners.
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Sharan Bal, a Founderland alum, has created Van Sha—an aromatic, spice-infused non-alcoholic spirit drawing from Indian heritage and crafted with bold innovation. Discover how her brand is redefining the zero-proof shelf and celebrating cultural roots.
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Eniye Okah, a visionary member of Founderland, is transforming the future of Black haircare with Beame—a smart, tech-driven solution rooted in cultural pride and innovation. Discover how she's reshaping beauty standards with purpose and precision.
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In this episode of Forward Thinking: Founder Stories by Fox Williams, Nneka Fleming, co-founder of Airfro and a Founderland community member, shares how her frustration with unsuitable haircare products led her to create a natural, effective solution for curly hair. Airfro caters to active lifestyles and family needs, offering fast, texture-friendly haircare.
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Tech.eu covers the €3.6 million seed round raised by Secfix, co-founded by Fabiola Munguia, a member of the Founderland community. The funding, led by Octopus Ventures, will help expand Secfix’s automated cybersecurity and compliance solutions for European SMEs.
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EU-Startups covers the €4.8 million funding round raised by Berlin-based Ovom Care, co-founded by Dr. Lynae Brayboy, a member of the Founderland community. The startup is advancing AI-powered fertility diagnostics to make reproductive healthcare more accessible and inclusive.
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Silicon Canals profiles Founderland’s work to dismantle systemic barriers for women of colour founders in Europe. The article details the funding gap these entrepreneurs face, the origins of Founderland, and how its community-led model is driving access to capital, visibility, and long-term support.
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In this episode of the ESMT Berlin podcast Campus 10178 , Alina Bassi shares her journey as a founder and her role in building Founderland. The conversation explores the structural barriers women of colour face in entrepreneurship and how Founderland is using community, capital, and technology to create systemic change.
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Femwealth spotlights the launch of Founderland’s Rise and Thrive report, an in-depth exploration of the experiences of women of colour founders in Europe. The article outlines how the report addresses the lack of data on diverse entrepreneurs and offers actionable insights for funders, policymakers, and allies seeking to build a more inclusive startup ecosystem.
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Founderland received honours at the 2025 ADC Awards, celebrating excellence in creative work for nonprofit clients. The recognition affirms the impact of Founderland’s brand identity and storytelling in advancing its mission to support women of colour entrepreneurs. The award spotlights design as a tool for equity and visibility.
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Sifted spotlights Deborah Choi, co-founder of Founderland, as one of the prominent Black and mixed-race female founders reshaping Europe’s startup scene. The article explores how these entrepreneurs are building successful ventures despite structural funding inequities, and why their visibility is essential to driving lasting change in the tech ecosystem.
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In this International Women’s Day special of the Female Business Angels podcast, Founderland’s co-founders discuss the barriers facing women of colour in the startup ecosystem and how Founderland is building infrastructure to change that. The episode explores fundraising inequality, community-driven solutions, and what it takes to #BreakTheBias in tech and venture capital.
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Founderland has launched PAM (Pitch AI Mentor), a groundbreaking AI tool designed to help women of colour founders practise and refine their investor pitches. Built to close the persistent funding gap, PAM provides private, low-stakes rehearsal space and tailored feedback to boost founders’ confidence and delivery. The tool is already being used by accelerators, universities, and startup programmes to level the playing field for underrepresented entrepreneurs.
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Founderland was selected as a recipient of the Google.org Impact Challenge for Women and Girls, recognising its work to increase access to funding and support for women of colour entrepreneurs in Europe. The award provides catalytic funding to expand Founderland’s programming and amplify its mission to reshape the startup ecosystem through equity-focused tools and community.
Read more ↗In this Techstars feature, Founderland’s co-founders share their vision for building a powerful ecosystem for women of colour entrepreneurs across Europe. The interview highlights their motivation, the systemic challenges their community faces, and how Founderland is using community, capital access, and technology to drive change in the startup landscape.
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Founderland received the prestigious iF Design Award for its bold brand identity and inclusive digital presence. Recognised for excellence in brand strategy, naming, design, and website execution, the award highlights how Founderland’s visual and strategic direction amplifies its mission to support women of colour entrepreneurs across Europe.
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