Dominic-Madori Davis

Senior Reporter, Venture, TechCrunch

Dominic-Madori Davis is a senior venture capital and startup reporter at TechCrunch. She is based in New York City. You can contact her on Signal at +1 (646)-831-7565.

Dominic-Madori Davis

Latest from Dominic-Madori Davis

Loop, the car insurance company co-founded by Harlem Capital co-founder John Henry, has laid off staff as the company struggles with fundraising.  Henry took to Instagram to post the email…

After 20 months of trying to raise funds, insurance startup Loop cuts staff

Featured Article

Black founders are creating tailored ChatGPTs for a more personalized experience

ChatGPT, one of the world’s most powerful artificial intelligence tools, struggles with cultural nuance.

10:05 am PDT • June 16, 2024
Black founders are creating tailored ChatGPTs for a more personalized experience

Diversity Spotlight is a feature on Crunchbase that lets companies add tags to their profiles to label themselves.

Crunchbase expands its diversity-tracking feature to Europe

Perhaps it is not surprising to hear that many of the pots and pans we use are coated in a poisonous chemical called Teflon that…

Creating cookware that won’t poison you

TechCrunch has kept readers informed regarding Fearless Fund’s courtroom battle to provide business grants to Black women. Today, we are happy to announce that Fearless Fund CEO and co-founder Arian…

Fearless Fund’s Arian Simone coming to Disrupt 2024

There is estimated to be 40 million acres of lawn or turf grass in the U.S., making the grass in people’s backyards one of the…

Sunday is helping people take better care of their lawns — and the environment too

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DEI backlash: Stay up-to-date on the latest legal and corporate challenges

It’s clear that this year will be a turning point for DEI.

3:58 pm PDT • June 3, 2024
DEI backlash: Stay up-to-date on the latest legal and corporate challenges

The court ruling said that Fearless Fund’s Strivers Grant likely violates the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which bans the use of race in contracts.

An appeals court rules that VC Fearless Fund cannot issue grants to Black women, but the fight continues

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After raising $100M, AI fintech LoanSnap is being sued, fined, evicted

The company has been sued by at least seven creditors, including Wells Fargo.

11:21 am PDT • June 3, 2024
After raising $100M, AI fintech LoanSnap is being sued, fined, evicted

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The women in AI making a difference

As a part of a multi-part series, TechCrunch is highlighting women innovators — from academics to policymakers —in the field of AI.

12:50 pm PDT • May 29, 2024
The women in AI making a difference

Sanil Chawla remembers the meetings he had with countless artists in college. Those creatives were looking for one thing: sustainable economic infrastructure that could help them scale rather than drown…

Slingshot raises $2.2 million to provide financial services to artists

Pinterest announced today that it is evolving its Creator Inclusion Fund to now be called the Pinterest Inclusion Fund. Pinterest teamed up with Shopify’s Build Black and Build Native programs…

Pinterest expands its Creator Fund to allow founders

What’s one to do after creating a billion-dollar startup? Well, if you’re Rubrik co-founder Arvind Jain, you simply start another one.  Jain co-founded Glean, an…

Arvind Jain created AI that actually makes your job easier

Chinasa T. Okolo researches AI policy and governance in the Global South.

Women in AI: Chinasa T. Okolo researches AI’s impact on the Global South

If raised, this new fund, the firm’s third, would be its largest to date.

Harlem Capital is raising a $150M fund

Crowdaa is an app that allows non-developers to easily create and release apps on the mobile store. 

App developer Crowdaa raises €1.2M and plans a US expansion

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Meta’s new AI council is composed entirely of white men

Meanwhile, women and people of color are disproportionately impacted by irresponsible AI.

2:37 pm PDT • May 22, 2024
Meta’s new AI council is composed entirely of white men

Gavet has had a rocky tenure at Techstars and her leadership was the subject of much controversy.

Techstars CEO Maëlle Gavet is out

Some startups choose to bootstrap from the beginning while others find themselves forced into self funding by a lack of investor interest or a business model that doesn’t fit traditional…

VCs wanted FarmboxRx to become a meal kit, the company bootstrapped instead

Seven orgs so far have signed on to standardize the way data is collected and shared.

Venture orgs form alliance to standardize data collection

Terri Burns, a former partner at GV, is venturing into a new chapter of her career by launching her own venture firm called Type Capital. 

GV’s youngest partner has launched her own firm

To give AI-focused women academics and others their well-deserved — and overdue — time in the spotlight, TechCrunch has been publishing a series of interviews focused on remarkable women who’ve contributed to…

Women in AI: Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick wants to pass more AI legislation

Rachel Coldicutt is the founder of Careful Industries, which researches the social impact technology has on society.

Women in AI: Rachel Coldicutt researches how technology impacts society

Interest in male birth control has increased in the past few years, especially since the U.S. overturned Roe vs. Wade, which protected a woman’s right to have an abortion. Since…

Kevin Eisenfrats is developing the ‘male IUD’

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The Kendrick-Drake feud shows how technology is changing rap battles

It seems we’re all in agreement: Kendrick Lamar defeated Drake in one of the most engrossing rap battles of the decade. To add insult to injury, Drake also threw himself into legal hot water when he deepfaked the late rapper Tupac. The tension between Lamar and Drake goes back decades,…

3:50 pm PDT • May 6, 2024
The Kendrick-Drake feud shows how technology is changing rap battles

The warehouse was dim and slightly misty. But the bar was open, and a photographer was snapping away anyway. On Friday, the crowd followed the white rabbit to Brooklyn for…

The Net Gala hosts its first event for the stylish and chronically online

Catherine Breslin is the founder and director of Kingfisher Labs, where she helps companies develop AI strategies.

Women in AI: Catherine Breslin helps companies develop AI strategies

Tara Chklovski is the CEO and founder of Technovation, a nonprofit that helps teach young girls about technology and entrepreneurship.

Women in AI: Tara Chklovski is teaching the next generation of AI innovators

The downturn in venture capital funding has impacted startups, VC firms, and accelerators alike. One company in the final category, Techstars, has been shaking up…

Inside TC’s Techstars investigation and how AI is accelerating disability tech

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Inside the ‘cold war’ at Techstars as CEO Maëlle Gavet hires, fires, fights to force change

Financial losses, founder revolts, public firings and overflowing office sewage mark the storied institution’s annus horribilis.

1:00 pm PDT • April 29, 2024
Inside the ‘cold war’ at Techstars as CEO Maëlle Gavet hires, fires, fights to force change