Jesse Middleton on Superpeer

Investor at Flybridge Capital. Co-founder at WeWork Labs.

The world is literally burning around us. I’m not quite sure what to say but here I go. First: I see you. I appreciate you. I stand with you in solidarity against racism, bigotry, & injustice. Second: I’m going to take action with my dollars & my time. #BlackLivesMatter. I know that if I don’t speak up & take action I’m a part of the problem (not racist). This is me trying to be a small part of the solution (anti-racist). I invest in early stage startups and ambitious founders leveraging the power of community. I am expanding that community. I'm turning on open office hours for POC, underrepresented founders and, very specifically, black founders throughout the month of June. I know that many people talk about "finding a warm intro" to VCs but this is a huge challenge for many. For those of you who don't have large networks of venture capitalists, this can be a non-starter. I'm here to tell you that it's not about who you know; it's about what you're building *and* why. Here's a quick story: My partner, Chip Hazard, met @sasyrae through open office hours. When he connected Cherae & I last year, we quickly decided to become her largest investor at Tastemakers Africa, a platform & community that's connecting the continent & the black diaspora. Cherae is a special person & founder, working to solve a massive problem. If you're building something that you think might fit in to our thesis (https://medium.com/@flybridge/flybridge-investment-thesis-the-power-of-community-51277a5ae44e), and you're a black founder, grab a slot here. If you'd prefer, you can also send me an email at j@flybridge.com. My calendar is open and I am ready and waiting to meet you and to hear your pitch. For the month of June I'm also making a donation for every office hour slot that I host to two causes: Equal Justice Initiative and BlackLivesMatter.com. If you're able to, please donate as well. -- Before all this I was on the founding team at WeWork and founded Backstory, a venture-backed startup in NYC. Some of investments I've made include Chief.com, Splice.com, Imperfect Foods, Wethos, Tastemakers Africa, Squire, Bulletin, and Remote Year. I’m here to talk about anything that’s on your mind.