Camille Padilla's startup may involve a virtual teleprompter, but it was an unscripted move that just netted $100,000 from Google.
Padilla is president and co-founder of Vodium, a Nashville-based technology company whose translucent teleprompter sits atop a user's video call — near that green dot — so that speakers can maintain better eye contact while delivering a more coherent presentation.
Google just selected Vodium for the inaugural round of its Latino Founders Fund. Padilla learned of the fund just a day before the application deadline.
"We were just absolutely astounded and thrilled. It's going to help us immensely," Padilla said. "I don't think we initially realized how big of an effort it would be. They're so hands-on. They've set up all these meetings, provided us all of these resources."
As part of the investment, Google pledges mentoring and other technical support from employees, plus access to free mental health therapy. Google did not take an equity stake in Vodium, which gives Padilla and co-founder Mary Mellor a stronger hand whenever they seek their next round of investment.
Google's money means Padilla and Mellor now have raised at least $1.35 million since starting their company several months into the Covid-19 pandemic. The company has one investor; Padilla declined to identify that person or firm, beyond saying they are Tennessee-based. That investor provided a $250,000 initial round and followed with a "seven-figure seed round."
"We're super-intentional about not fundraising more than we can handle," Padilla said. "We really want to see if we can fundraise to create an operational company that's profitable. In the venture capital world, with me being not only a Latina but a woman, it's really hard to get money. We're a female duo. There's not a lot of us out there."
Padilla was working in advertising when the idea for Vodium occurred, after she could not find a virtual teleprompter for a video shoot she was conducting online. She and Mellor spent $5,000 to come up with the initial test version of Vodium, which launched in August 2020.
Two months later, it crashed. Padilla and Mellor faced a choice: Abandon the idea, or quit their jobs, rebuild the technology and go all-in.
"It's funny, [our fathers] always told us growing up, 'Don't start your own company.' They've had struggles and witnessed struggles," Padilla said. "In the pandemic, we just felt backed into a corner. There was no room to second-guess ourselves."
Mellor's father owns Hog Wild, a restaurant and catering company in Memphis. Padilla's father is an attorney by profession who's now president of Valparaiso University.
At the time, Mellor was back in Tennessee and Padilla was in Los Angeles. They moved themselves, and their company, to Nashville. Vodium is the only Tennessee-based company in the first round of Google's Latino Founders Fund.
"We’ve been overwhelmed by the amount of the tech community and the entrepreneur community that has been super-welcoming and always super-interested in our future," Padilla said.
Vodium, which is patent-pending, could serve as a barometer of how the return-to-office movement is faring. "We believe people are doubling-down on hybrid," Padilla said.
