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World Business Chicago’s Gender Equity Office Announces Third Cohort of Seed Founders

October 4, 2024

CHICAGO, Oct. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — World Business Chicago’s Gender Equity Office is proud to announce the third cohort of its Seed Founder Program, featuring nine visionary women entrepreneurs who are driving innovation and redefining industries. This program remains a cornerstone of our mission to support gender equity in Chicago’s dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystem by providing founders with the resources, connections, and support they need to thrive.

According to Chicago:Blend 2024 report on the state of venture for underrepresented founders, among comparable U.S. metro areas, Chicago has the highest percentage of venture-backed companies with at least one woman founder (36.5%) and ranks second for companies founded by people of color (24.4%), Black founders (10.4%), Latine founders (8%), and AAPI founders (5.9%). While Chicago leads in the share of venture capital raised by Latine founders (27.6%) and ranks third for AAPI founders (14.1%), the share of funding raised by women-founded companies (14.9%) remains an area of growth. These rankings underscore the progress Chicago is making while highlighting opportunities for continued investment in underrepresented founders.

Meet the 2024-2025 Seed Founder Cohorts:

Perteet Spencer, Founder of Ayo Foods
Ayo Foods is dedicated to bringing West African-inspired cuisine to mainstream markets, offering bold flavors and nutritious meals that celebrate cultural heritage. Learn more.

Lily Wang, Founder of Demi
Demi focuses Is the first smart composting system designed for multifamily that turns your trash into a profit center. Learn more.

Mariana Padilla, Founder of Hackerverse
Hackerverse is a Sales enablement company that specializes in streamlining the Proof of Concept (PoC) process for B2B cybersecurity companies. Learn more.

Ashley Pradhan & Cierra Valor, Founders of IN BOLD PRINT
You can think of IN BOLD PRINT as the TurboTax of Carbon Accounting. Learn more.

Colette Ellis, Founder of Libbie Health
Libbie Health Addresses the critical need for culturally-sensitive and accessible mental healthcare. Learn more.

Jill Miller, Founder of Lunum
At Lunum, we use data to help companies realize a return on investment in people and communities and recognise how their practices can have a positive impact on the world. Learn more.

Prarthana Gupta, Founder of OrdrSmart
OrdrSmart is digitizing the most traditional and widely used manufacturing operation—physical product samples—helping manufacturers increase revenue, decrease costs, and reduce failure rates. Learn more.

Laura Epstein, Founder of Pulse Charter Connect
Digitizing an antiquated logistics system used by transplant centers, facilitating faster, safer, and more efficient transportation for organs and surgical teams. Learn more.

Shima Rayej, Founder of Safe Rate
Safe Rate is an AI-powered mortgage marketplace where consumers find the lowest cost mortgage loan in under 30 seconds. Learn more.

Launched in Spring 2022, the Seed Founder Program began as a 12-month intervention for pre-seed and seed-level women founders, designed to offer critical support through tailored mentorship, network introductions, corporate connections, and public relations initiatives. The first two cohorts—comprising nine and ten founders, respectively—served as learning grounds to refine the model, ensuring it addresses the unique challenges faced by women (cis and trans) and nonbinary founders. For reference, see the Get Cities Seed Founder Report linked here. Among the results include:

Tracking success through dollars raised, connections made, and support provided, the program has demonstrated its impact: over 78% of participants across both cohorts reported making at least one valuable connection that enhanced their business trajectory.
The power of community is consistently highlighted by participants, with six out of nine founders from the first cohort citing peer connections as a key takeaway. As one founder noted, “Connecting with like-minded, driven women founders who understand the unique challenges we face has been both empowering and enlightening.”

The program’s approach focuses on relationship-building and community, empowering founders to support one another while navigating shared challenges. By fostering a sense of belonging and equipping founders with the tools to overcome systemic barriers, the program plays a critical role in leveling the playing field and helping underrepresented founders raise capital at rates comparable to their peers.

The Gender Equity Office at World Business Chicago emerged from the transition of the GET Cities initiative, which focused on accelerating the power and influence of historically excluded people and places in tech. With the sunsetting of GET Cities in 2024, World Business Chicago, along with Radical Partners and Last Mile Education Fund, was selected to continue this critical work. This transition represents a deepened commitment to fostering resilience within communities and building strong, sustainable relationships across Chicago’s tech ecosystem and beyond.

“We are thrilled to welcome this remarkable group of founders to our program,” said Elle Ramel, Lead, Gender Equity Office, World Business Chicago. “Their work exemplifies the creativity, resilience, and leadership needed to drive real change, and we are committed to helping them access the resources and connections they need to thrive.”

SOURCE World Business Chicago