We need to talk about investors’ problem with vaginas; Women in Business Expo; WoW x Welden giveaway; 3 ways AI will change healthcare + more
Your go-to place for latest news and updates from the world of emerging technologies and diversity in tech.
Happy Monday everyone! 🙂
In a very insightful article published last Friday in the Wired UK - We need to talk about investors’ problem with vaginas - Marina Gerner, tech journalist, talked to a number of female-led businesses - Joylux, Lora DiCarlo, Hanx, Modern Fertility - about their experience in raising funds in an overwhelmingly male-dominated industry venture capital is.
Society has mostly overlooked or ignored female health – from the detrimental side effects of the birth control pill to a lack of ground-breaking innovation in childbirth and menopause. So, for femtech startups there’s a huge opportunity to innovate.
It’s hard enough for any female entrepreneur to raise money, but those with a vagina-centric innovation, it’s even more difficult. This sentiment was a recurring topic at this year’s FemTech Forum organised by Women of Wearables, which was all-digital because of the pandemic.
Fundraising is only part of a start-up’s journey. Promotion is another hurdle. Joylux’s target audience – women over 40 – is on Facebook, but company can’t use the word vagina on the platform because it’s deemed pornographic. “You can say penis and erection and erectile dysfunction. You cannot say vagina! It makes our world really challenging when you can't talk about a body part that 50 per cent of the world's population has, because people think it's dirty or taboo.”, says Colette Courtion, founder of Joylux.
So instead of saying vagina on Facebook, they say: “this is for your v” or “your feminine wellness.” What happens as a result is that women are engaged but wonder: what does this product actually do?
“We have to have a functioning vagina in order to live life to the fullest,” says Courtion. “If you're not making investments in companies that are helping women, if you're not giving them a platform to talk, then you're not going to see progress.”
Read the full story via the Wired UK.
Thank you for tuning in this Monday, happy reading! 💌
Join WoW premium membership to learn from and connect with our community of entrepreneurs, designers, and technologists, leverage valuable resources and discover career opportunities! Women of Wearables is a leading global organization for women and allies in wearable tech, fashion tech, IoT, and health tech with 20k+ members globally!
Join the Women of Wearables Global meetup group!
Follow us on Twitter / Facebook / LinkedIn / Instagram.
Get in touch if you’d like to become our partner and promote your company in this newsletter!
If you are a female founder, designer, or technologist, we would love to feature you on our WoW women blog!
#Giveaway alert 🎁 🥰
This month, we've teamed up with Welden so that one lucky winner could win their beautiful laptop sleeve plus the accessory case! 😍💻 The contest is open worldwide. The winner will be chosen at random and announced on Wednesday, August 12th.
In case you don’t win and you’d like to try out their products, Women of Wearables members can use code WoW15 for 15% off Welden bags! Discount promo code can be used for both the US store and UK/European store!
Read more about Welden’s founder and CEO Sandy Friesen in our interview with her on WoW women blog!
Upcoming WoW monthly webinars 📆👇
Webinar - The Future of Health Tech, 26 August / 6:30pm BST / 1:30pm ET / 10:30am PT (only 10 tickets left!)
WoW members monthly gathering, 2 September / 6pm BST / 1pm ET / 10am PT
Premium WoW members get FREE access to all our paid webinars + recorded sessions and resources lists from previous and future webinars, more info about what’s included in premium membership here.
By filling out our short 2-min survey you will help us deliver even better webinars for our global community! :) Submit your answers and you could be a lucky winner who will get FREE access to all our paid events and webinars for a full year! 🆓 Deadline for submitting your answers is August 20, 23:59pm BST!
Community events & webinars 💻🌎📆
We are very excited to announce a partnership with this year’s Women in Business Expo virtual conference taking place on October 14-15!
The conference will bring two days of high-quality content from world-class speakers and exclusive networking with top employers/companies that encourage female leadership and embrace diversity and inclusion. Whether you are actively job seeking, returning to work after a career break, considering setting up your own business, investing in a franchise, or are already a business owner, you will gain the inspiration, guidance, and business services needed to achieve your professional goals.
Early bird and VIP tickets for Women in Business Expo Virtual 14-15 October are now available! Get access to 60 seminars from world-class business leaders, 1-2-1 meetings with leading companies, opportunity to attend roundtables with top employers recruiting talent and offering business services, and much more.
And more 👇
➡️ Telehealth Online Virtual Summit, September 8-10 (WoW members can use code WOW10 for 10% off tickets)
➡️ Women’s Health Innovation Summit, September 14-15 and 21-22 (WoW members can use code WOW10 for 10% off tickets)
➡️ WIRED Smarter, October 13 (WoW members can use code WOW10 for 10% off tickets)
➡️ Sx Tech 2020, November 20 (WoW members get 15% off their tickets using this link)
Community and industry news & updates 👫📌🆕
Applications for the COVID-19 Tech Grant by Women Who Tech are open to North American tech startups, with at least one woman founder or co-founder, whose product solves a problem ignited by COVID-19. Read the full criteria and rules here. Apply now to be considered as one of five finalists, two grants will be awarded at the end of the program - a $10,000 Innovation Grant and a $3,000 Impact Grant. Applications close August 23 at 11:59 pm PT.
Springboard’s Health Innovation Hub: Life Science is a program for women-led life science and healthcare companies seeking growth funding and connections to experts and strategic partners for product development and expansion. Areas of focus for the program include (but are not limited to) drugs, therapeutics, diagnostics, medtech, and medical devices. Apply by August 17.
Rethink Impact Closes $182 Million Fund II To Invest In Female-Led Tech Companies / via Pulse 2.0
Femtech is expansive—it’s time to start treating it as such / via Rock Health
Come&Gone: $800K Seed Round and Cindy Gallop Joins Board / via Femtech Insider
Femtech market has unmet segments despite industry growth, report says / via MobiHealthNews
Women hit hardest by mental health effects of pandemic, and there may be more trouble ahead / via CTV News
‘We must educate healthcare providers’ about Black women’s experience / via MedicalNewsToday
Postpartum Depression: A Mental Health Crisis For Black Women In The Midst Of COVID-19 / via Blavity
Covid-19 apps and wearables are everywhere. Can they actually benefit patients? / via STAT
Simplified circuit design could revolutionize how wearables are manufactured / via TechXplore
CSIRO scientists discover how to grow coloured cotton, removing need for harmful chemical dyes / via ABC news
Aja Barber: “Sustainable fashion is a must if we want to be kind to our planet” / via Stylist
Has Sustainable Fashion Failed The Black Community? / via Refinery29
Top 5 Documentaries on Sustainable Fashion / via Real Sustainability
Cloak your photos with this AI privacy tool to fool facial recognition / via The Verge
3 Ways Artificial Intelligence Will Change Healthcare / via Forbes
'White' artificial intelligence risks exacerbating racial inequality, study suggests / via Sky News
For Female Founders, Women In Tech & Allies 👩🏾⚕️👩🏼🏫👩🔬
Join WoW premium membership to learn from and connect with our community of entrepreneurs, designers, and technologists, leverage valuable resources and discover career opportunities!
Join the Women of Wearables Global meetup group!