fbpx

Where Money Goes To Be Born: Angel Investor Talks About Atlanta Tech Startups

Where Money Goes To Be Born: Angel Investor Talks About Atlanta Tech Startups

In case you missed the recent 500 Startups Unity and Inclusion Summit (Atlanta) at TechSquare Labs, we’ve got you covered. Moguldom.com was in Atlanta for the event, which provided a forum for some of the newest ideas around reversing inequality in tech. This is the seventh in a series of Moguldom videos from 500 Startups Unity and Inclusion Summit (Atlanta), June 10, 2017.

Angel investor Michael Ross attended the 500 Startups Unity & Inclusion Summit to look at his investments. He came to listen to founders — he has backed some of them — as they inspired the audience at a daylong series of panel discussions. Perhaps Ross wanted to see who else was talking to them.

Ross is president of MHR International, an Atlanta construction management firm. MHR has overseen $500 million-plus in contracts awarded to minority, women, and disadvantaged contractors. Projects include the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport expansion, the Fulton County Capital Improvement Project, and the 1996 Olympic Games.

“Several companies that I invested in are here,” Ross told Moguldom.com on the sidelines of the event.

These include Partpic, founded by tech entrepreneur Jewel Burks, Techturized (a mobile app that gives recommendations on hair products and services), Monsieur (an artificially intelligent robotic bartender that makes cocktails), Tech Square Labs (a coworking space for Atlanta startups) and Base Ventures, a seed-stage fund investing in technology companies.

“I think Atlanta is a burgeoning tech city and we’re going to be on the forefront of diversity and inclusion and the integration of technology,” Ross said. “All the talent in the country is not in Silicon Valley. There’s a lot of talent all over the country and events like this help us reach out and touch people all over the country.”

Ross was also at the event to celebrate.

“We’re excited,” he said. “Patientory (an Atlanta cybersecurity healthcare tech platform) raised $7 million last week. Another company out of Tech Square Labs won the Google Ventures contest in the Valley. Having all this talent in one room conversing and networking is just a very powerful thing. A lot of synergy and energy is going to come out of this event.”