Leveraging Tech in the Black Community

Stefan Grant is the Co-founder & CEO of Noirbnb, "an accommodations, experiences provider and concierge service created for the African diaspora and other people of color." The entrepreneur spoke at the TEDxSistrunk event last year and shared his decision to make travel experiences more inclusive for all after experiencing discrimination while using Airbnb. The speaker recounts a tense situation after neighbours at a property mistakenly called the police on him and his friends, not believing they were paying customers of the popular home sharing platform.

Noirbnb is centered around making travel experiences safer, more welcoming and more inclusive no matter one's race or ethnicity and is a business that inspires Stefan Grant's talk as it calls for more tech inclusion on a grand scale. Prior to co-founding Noirbnb, Stefan was best known for being an MC, producer, photographer and the founder of DOPE SINCE '88, a record label that defines the word 'dope' as "driven on positive energy."

The multi-talented entrepreneur shares personal anecdotes about his decision to start a business and spotlights innovations from Black tech pioneers that influenced modern day inventions -- including examples from both American and ancient history. He explores the impact of these individuals even through times of discrimination and explains the importance of leveraging tech in the black community in order to advance the industry as a whole. Stefan concludes his talk by urging audience members to consider their legacy and what physical and digital monuments they will build and leave behind for future generations.