How This VC Fund Is Funneling More Black Dollars & Talent Into Tech

Megan Holston-Alexander is a partner at Andreessen Horowitz Cultural Leadership Fund. It’s the first VC fund that raised money exclusively from Black leaders — from entertainment to sports to business. The fund co-invests with a16z’s other funds and has raised more than $60 million across its three funds to date.

The overarching purpose of CLF is to create generational wealth opportunities for Black communities. It’s a two-pronged approach. The first is getting Black dollars directly on the cap tables of high-potential startup companies. And the second is creating a pipeline for more Black talent at early-stage companies.

Megan joined me on the show on the heels of hosting the first-ever Cultural Leadership Summit and announcing CLF III before then. Here’s everything we covered during our conversation:

0:59 Takeaways from the Cultural Leadership Summit
3:29 Building despite economic uncertainties
5:52 High-worth individuals also affected by macro economy
7:29 How has the Cultural Leadership Fund evolved?
10:55 Difference between entertainment and executive LP’s
16:24 Web3’s knowledge imbalance
18:55 Megan’s interest in DAO’s
20:34 Will CLF’s investment model change?
22:22 How CLF used relationships and trust-building to scale its operation
28:52 Megan’s vetting process with LP’s
31:03 How VC industry at-large can create more opportunities for black founders and talent
40:27 Has the Bay Area lost its monopoly on tech?
47:33 What CLF is focusing on in 2023

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