The 2021 Cox Enterprises Social Impact Accelerator powered by Techstars includes two Atlanta startups.
The second-year social impact accelerator tapped Empowrd Apps and Legal Equalizer along with eight other startups from around the country for its 12-week program, which is focused on addressing social justice and systemic racism issues through the innovation.
“We have a platform and opportunity to shine a light on both the problems and potential solutions to social injustice,” said Maury Wolfe, Cox Enterprise assistant vice president of corporate responsibility and public affairs. “At Cox, one of the things that’s core to us is the idea that profitable businesses can solve really big problems.”
Barry Givens, managing director of the accelerator, announced the social justice focus in October. The accelerator received hundreds of applications from companies across the country.
“We hope that our class will be a shining example of the opportunities that exist in the social justice vertical and how to support the diverse founders that are tackling these issues,” Givens wrote in a Jan. 25 announcement.
The 10 startups are all in the technology field but span different business industries, from health to criminal justice. Wolfe said the startups are at a variety of stages, and the accelerator took a chance on some that were in very early stages. The program aims to condense three years of company growth into 12 weeks, Wolfe said.
In addition to an investment in each startup, the program provides mentorship to the founders through creating business connections, teaching about fundraising strategies and providing technical support.
“The mentorship pool is based on leadership from across Cox businesses as well as leadership from the community,” Wolfe said. “We pull from other Atlanta corporations, the startup community and the investment community so we get a really broad cross section.”
The two Atlanta startups in the accelerator are innovating in the civic engagement and criminal justice spaces.
Empowrd Apps, founded by Horace Williams in 2015, provides people with personalized information about local issues and how to contact elected representatives.
Legal Equalizer, an app founded in 2015 and led by CEO Mbye Njie, teaches people about their rights during police encounters and promotes citizen accountability. The app features an emergency button that can record interactions with police officers. It can also send text messages to emergency contacts about the interaction and contact a local lawyer.
The 2021 program will stay virtual because of pandemic concerns, Wolfe said. The accelerator started Jan. 25 and ends with an April 29 demo day.
Here are the 10 participating startups:
- Acclinate: Birmingham, Alabama-based digital health startup that aims to diversify clinical trials
- Co:census: New York-based survey software startup for inclusive polling
- COMMUNITYx: Los Angeles-based social media platform to connect people through similar social causes
- Empowerd Apps: Atlanta-based app for connecting with elected officials and enabling personalized civic engagement
- Govrn: San Francisco-based startup that aims to change the way people donate to political campaigns
- JusticeText: California-based video evidence management software for public defenders to process footage for legal defense
- Legal Equalizer: Atlanta-based app that teaches people about their rights and records police interactions
- MINWO: Woodbridge, Virginia-based consulting startup that matches Black businesses with organizations that want to support them
- STRE.ME: Fort Wayne, Indiana-based software startup that helps employees manage their implicit biases and create cultural awareness
- Unpacking: Online learning platform that focuses on updating diversity training for employees
