GeoCloud Selected for Google for Startups Black Founders Fund

Sep 21, 2021

Abiodun Johnson & Jay Jackson are part of a group of founders selected for Google for Startups program focused on high-potential startups from Black entrepreneurs based in the U.S.


Abiodun Johnson

Abiodun Johnson, Co-Founder & CEO @ GeoCloud

NEW YORK - September 21, 2021 - (Newswire.com)

GeoCloud, a startup focused on creating personalized and enriched location-based experiences, today announced it was selected to join the second cohort of the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund, a $10 million initiative designed for Black founders who are building great companies yet are often locked out of access to the funding that is critical to their success.

Last year, Google for Startups gave 76 Black-led startups up to $100,000 in non-dilutive funding, helping them keep their doors open, pay their employees, and focus on building their businesses. With this second $5 million investment in the U.S. Black Founders Fund, 50 more founders across the United States will receive $100,000 in non-dilutive capital, meaning founders do not give up any ownership in their company in exchange for funding. The fund also includes technical support from tools and teams across Google, including as much as $120,000 in donated search ads from Google.org and up to $100,000 in Google Cloud credits. Last year, founders who received awards went on to raise more than $50 million in capital and 80% of recipients used the funding to create jobs.

GeoCloud is one of a select few high-potential startups that the Google for Startups team has selected for this year's nationwide cohort. 

"I've heard nothing but good things from my entrepreneurial peers in regards to the quality of the Google for Startups programs. In addition, when I heard that Jewel Burks was the new head of Google for Startups in the U.S., I knew that she would elevate the accelerator experience," says Abiodun Johnson, co-founder of GeoCloud. "This support from Google for Startups comes at a critical time and will be used to expand our team, amplify our voice through the ad support, and provide a more robust technology offering via Google Cloud suite of products." 

"The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund embodies our mission of helping underrepresented founders grow their businesses. We are excited to continue the fund and contribute funding to Black founders, with no strings attached. Black founders currently receive less than 1 percent of total VC funding," says Jewel Burks Solomon, Head of Google for Startups U.S. "We heard loud and clear from the 2020 fund recipients that Google for Startups and Goodie Nation have been crucial to their success not only through funding, but through community, mentorship, network connections and technical expertise."

"Our advisors will be working with the founders to discuss business pain points, offer introductions to customers and investors and provide regular therapy sessions and forums to support recipients emotionally and professionally," says Joey Womack, CEO of Goodie Nation.

ABOUT GEOCLOUD

GeoCloud is a location intelligence company building out personalized location-based solutions for consumers, businesses, and governments to reach and communicate effectively with people near their locations. Their first product uGeo is a geo-social network that encourages people to live locally and engage with their community in real time. With the ability to find, join, and create groups, you'll always feel at home wherever you are in the world. 

ABOUT GOOGLE FOR STARTUPS

Google for Startups works to level the playing field for startup founders and communities to succeed by bringing the best of Google's products, connections, and best practices to startups. Paired with a deep commitment to create diverse startup communities, many of our offerings are designed specifically to provide underrepresented founders with access to resources and opportunities. We support startups everywhere to build something better. Because when startups succeed, we all succeed.

Contact: [email protected]


Related Images


Abiodun Johnson

Abiodun Johnson, Co-Founder & CEO @ GeoCloud


Jay Jackson

Jay Jackson, Co-Founder & CTO @ GeoCloud



Press Release Service by Newswire.com

Original Source: GeoCloud Selected for Google for Startups Black Founders Fund

More News

A Powerful Mosquito-Hunting Laser Uses A.I. to Zap Winged Pests
Oct 30, 2026
A Powerful Mosquito-Hunting Laser Uses A.I. to Zap Winged Pests

Using sensors developed for self-driving cars, a Chinese start-up claims it can track and destroy tiny flying targets while avoiding people, pets and reflective surfaces.

Why the Philippines remains a hotspot for transnational drug syndicates
Oct 30, 2026
Why the Philippines remains a hotspot for transnational drug syndicates

Transnational drug syndicates in the Philippines continue to thrive despite decades of crackdowns targeting street-level dealers, with analysts warning that regional suppliers, financiers and trafficking networks have largely eluded enforcement efforts. Former drug officials and security analysts say the country’s drug trade remains closely connected to a wider regional supply chain, with criminal groups relying on local partners, maritime routes and established distribution networks to move...

AI, fuelled by advanced chips, set to power semiconductor manufacturing: industry veteran
Oct 30, 2026
AI, fuelled by advanced chips, set to power semiconductor manufacturing: industry veteran

Artificial intelligence is no longer merely the driving force behind global semiconductor demand, but is also actively reinventing how chips are designed and built, industry leaders and scientists said at a major science forum in Shanghai on Friday. Chen Yunji, co-founder of AI chipmaker Cambricon Technologies, predicted that the integration between AI and chip design would eventually automate the chip design process entirely. “In the [next] 10 years, the most important development … is the RSI...

India’s Rahul Gandhi takes on Modi, but can grass-roots defiance win votes?
Oct 30, 2026
India’s Rahul Gandhi takes on Modi, but can grass-roots defiance win votes?

In recent weeks, Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has frequently taken to the streets – joining protest marches, staging sit-ins at police stations and confronting authorities over alleged abuses of power and corruption. Often trading the formal attire traditionally worn by India’s political elite for a T-shirt and jeans, Gandhi’s high-visibility participation in grass-roots demonstrations has drawn wide attention as he seeks to place himself at the forefront of a growing movement of...

South Korean students caught cheating with AI glasses to face prosecution from 2027
Oct 30, 2026
South Korean students caught cheating with AI glasses to face prosecution from 2027

South Korea will file criminal complaints against students caught cheating on a national university entrance exam with smart glasses and toughen penalties for their use, a government official has said. Sales of smart glasses – which allow the wearer to shoot photos and videos and interact with an AI assistant among other abilities – are growing worldwide. But so is a backlash around the gadgets, including concerns over people being filmed without consent and their use by exam cheats. South...

Will diversifying fuel imports be enough to fix Indonesia’s energy shortfall?
Oct 30, 2026
Will diversifying fuel imports be enough to fix Indonesia’s energy shortfall?

Indonesia is looking beyond Singapore for petrol supplies as it seeks to reduce its dependence on a single source, but analysts say diversifying imports will do little to address the country’s fuel production shortfall without faster refinery modernisation and investment in alternative fuels. Indonesia has long sourced petroleum products from Singapore, including RON 90 petrol, which has a minimum octane rating of 90 and is marketed domestically as Pertalite. Singapore’s geographic proximity,...

China dismisses US report of suspected spy targeting Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang as ‘groundless’
Oct 30, 2026
China dismisses US report of suspected spy targeting Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang as ‘groundless’

China on Friday hit out at reported US intelligence allegations that a suspected Chinese spy had targeted Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang, dismissing the claims as “groundless speculation” aimed at smearing Beijing. “The relevant report is based on groundless speculation and [is] purely aimed at smearing and slandering China,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a regular media briefing in Beijing. The pushback came after US outlet The New York Times reported on Thursday that...

Court Rejects Erin Patterson’s Appeal in Mushroom Murders Case
Oct 30, 2026
Court Rejects Erin Patterson’s Appeal in Mushroom Murders Case

Judges took away the possibility of parole for an Australian woman, Erin Patterson, and rejected a bid to overturn her conviction over a deadly beef Wellington lunch.

Toxic online subcultures fuelling Asia’s school attacks
Oct 30, 2026
Toxic online subcultures fuelling Asia’s school attacks

Recent school attacks across Malaysia have shone a light on a troubling trend of teenagers joining an online subculture that glamorises real-life killers, according to a prominent security analyst. Three violent incidents in Malaysian schools – in Kuching on October 21, Banting in July and Bandar Utama in October last year – could be linked to the True Crime Community (TCC), said Munira Mustaffa, founder of Kuala Lumpur-based security consulting firm Chasseur Group. In the Kuching case, the...

I Covered the Tiananmen Square Massacre. It Still Weighs on Me.
Oct 30, 2026
I Covered the Tiananmen Square Massacre. It Still Weighs on Me.

The day that changed modern China also taught me how to recognize true courage.

Amid brutal sell-off, what comes next for Google, Amazon and other Big Tech titans?
Oct 30, 2026
Amid brutal sell-off, what comes next for Google, Amazon and other Big Tech titans?

Soaring artificial intelligence revenues have failed to shield Intel, Amazon and Google’s parent company Alphabet from a brutal Wall Street sell-off, as their latest quarterly results deepened investor jitters over mounting capital spending and delayed returns. Intel plunged about 23 per cent in extended trading on Thursday, while Amazon shed 7.3 per cent. Alphabet tumbled 12.6 per cent during the regular session in its worst day on record, dragging the Nasdaq Composite down 1.4 per cent and...

New ‘Call of Duty’ Game Draws Criticism for Using Footage of Deadly Seoul Crowd Crush
Oct 30, 2026
New ‘Call of Duty’ Game Draws Criticism for Using Footage of Deadly Seoul Crowd Crush

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 uses actual visuals from a Halloween crowd crush in South Korea, in which over 150 people died in a narrow alleyway.

YOUR NEWS, OUR NETWORK.

Do you have Great News you want to tell the world?

Be it updates about your business or your community, you can make sure that it’s heard by submitting your story to our network reaching hundreds of news sites across 6 verticals.

Indo Inquirer

Indo Inquirer is the leading online news network in Indonesia, providing daily breaking news with in-depth news coverage and the best photojournalism. We deliver compelling and diverse engaging stories around the world.

Newsletter