The Justice Department is looking closely into the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives of major U.S. companies, Reuters reports. Google and Verizon are among the companies being investigated for their diversity initiatives in hiring and promotions. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, Verizon publicly announced that it planned to remove references to DEI from its website and training materials. Additionally, it claimed it would be removing its internal human resources team focused on diversity policies and would no longer offer bonuses or set goals to increase the representation of women and minority employees. “We are committed to creating a culture that leverages and values each person’s unique strengths and talents,” Verizon Chief Legal Officer Vandana Venkatesh said in a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr on May 15. “However, we recognize that the regulatory and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion (‘DEI’)...

Has the time finally arrived to change the user address of a Google email account? The tech giant shared a hopeful update just in time for the holidays. The New York Times reports that, although users had previously been able to change their email usernames, if they wanted to keep their data and services such as Gmail, Google Maps, YouTube, Google Play, or Google Drive, the address had to remain unchanged. Some users have now been able to change the address for all their accounts ending in @gmail.com, while still having access to their data, such as photos, messages, and emails, unlike before. The feature is not available to all users yet. It appears only on the Hindi-language version of Google’s support page, suggesting it may be available first in India or Hindi-speaking markets for now, according to CNBC. “The ability to change your Google Account email address is gradually rolling out to all users, so this option may not be available to you right now,” according to an English...

A law has been passed in Ghana permitting the use of cryptocurrency. 3 million Ghanaians use the currency, which was previously unregulated by the country, according to Bloomberg. Between July 2023 and June 2024, cryptocurrency transactions in Ghana reached $3 billion, according to Del Titus Bawuah, chief executive officer of Web3 Africa Group, as reported by the outlet. “It is in the interest of African authorities to mainstream cryptocurrency into their financial system for better oversight,” Bawuah explained, according to the outlet. “Clearly, data supports that companies and citizens heavily use virtual currencies.” Bank of Ghana Governor Johnson Asiama commented: “We are actually late in the game. Many of the country’s economic agents make and receive payments in cryptocurrencies, but they are not being captured in the nation’s financial accounts because of the absence of regulatory oversight.” Now, Ghana’s parliament has approved the Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill, which...

T.I. is reshaping his perspective around AI. On the rapper’s podcast “expediTIously,” which has more than 619,000 subscribers (at the time of this writing), he weighed in on technology, — something that has a stronghold across various industries including music. Some in the industry are banking on AI-powered music creation platforms like Suno. Timbaland is an advocate for Suno and serves as its strategic advisor, as AFROTECH™ previously told you. Dr. Dre is also leveraging AI while producing works for Bruce Springsteen, T.I. confirmed on the podcast. It was the Compton, CA-born and “Nuthin’ but a ‘G’ Thang” artist who changed T.I.’s viewpoint around AI. “I think it’s dangerous. Initially I have been emphatically against it,” T.I. explained. “However, I talked to Dr. Dre and you know he was telling me about you know he’s producing for Bruce Springsteen and he telling me that he’s using some AI. He sent me some stuff that he did on AI, and he was like ‘No it’s still work. You still...

Black creators are weighing in with their thoughts regarding TikTok’s recent sale. As previously reported by AFROTECH™ , TikTok, owned by China-based ByteDance Ltd., must be sold to U.S. investors or risk being banned. More than 170 million Americans use the platform. On Dec. 18, tech company Oracle, private equity firm Silver Lake, and investment firm MGX reached a deal to form a new entity that will control the U.S. TikTok app. The deal still requires regulatory approval from China and is expected to close Jan. 22, 2026. The platform has been especially beneficial for entrepreneurs selling products through TikTok Shop and creators such as Golloria George, who has 3.3 million followers on the platform and 170.2 million likes (at the time of this writing). The beauty creator has used her platform to advocate for greater representation of darker shades among brands and across the beauty industry. @golloria definetly feel like it gave me more warmth than shadow ♬ original sound –...

Artificial intelligence made an impact on the job market in 2025. AFROTECH™ has reported various layoffs across a handful of companies this year, with AI being a contributing factor. Among them is Microsoft, which laid off 15,000 workers, about 17% of its workforce, while continuing to invest $80 billion in AI. “We continue to implement organisational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace,” a Microsoft spokesperson told BBC in July when a 9,000 reduction in the tech company’s workforce was announced. HP also shared that it intends to lay off between 4,000 and 6,000 employees by 2028 as it integrates AI into its operations, per CNN. As AFROTECH™ stated, it intends to lay off employees in product development, internal operations, and customer support. According to CNN, HP CEO Enrique Lores said, “This initiative will create $1 billion in gross run rate savings over three years.” AI can already replace $1.2 trillion in wages across sectors...

Blanca Burch is shedding light on the misrepresentation of Black hairstyles by AI. The Milwaukee native attended an immersion school for elementary and middle school. She spent half her days speaking French and the other half speaking English, which she credits with giving her a global perspective and sparking her curiosity about areas beyond her immediate community. When she attended Spelman College, she initially entered as a psychology major but later pivoted to international relations and affairs with a focus on East Asia. “I had been studying Japanese for about a year when I first came to Spelman. So I figured that would be a fun path to take,” she told AFROTECH™. She took a course at the HBCU’s Arthur M. Blank Spelman Innovation Lab as a junior, a makerspace that supports “creative inquiry, unconventional research, experimental pedagogy, and exploratory play” to help students in art, science, technology, and engineering, its website reads. Culturally Kreative Art was a focus...

Usher is teaming up with Big Sean to invest in Detroit youth. According to a news release, the pair is investing $1 million to launch an innovation incubator that will support youth looking to become content creators. The investment is poised to tap into the growing creator economy, which, according to Goldman Sachs, is projected to become a $480 billion industry by 2027. The incubator will be situated within the Michigan Central Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan, which is set to open in February 2026, notes the press release. Both Usher and Big Sean bring their experiences as Boys & Girls Club alumni, to this investment. The incubator will offer young people ages 14–24 access to creative technology, hands-on learning, and mentorship from executives and creators, preparing them to pursue careers in film, television, and music production, as well as in AI, 3D, immersive technologies, and special effects. What’s more, it will also provide seed funding to launch paid creative...

President Donald Trump’s social media company is expanding into the energy sector through a planned merger with a nuclear fusion startup. According to The New York Times, Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, has reached an agreement to merge with TAE Technologies, a privately held nuclear fusion company, in an all-stock deal valued at more than $6 billion. The merger would result in one of the first publicly traded companies focused on developing fusion power. Trump Media, based in Sarasota, FL, operates Truth Social and has recently expanded into streaming and cryptocurrency-related ventures, per the outlet. President Trump is the company’s largest shareholder, with just over a 50% stake that is held in a trust managed by his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who also serves on the company’s board. TAE Technologies was founded in 1998 under the name Tri Alpha Energy and has been working on fusion reactor development for many years, according to the...

TikTok appears to have avoided a ban in the U.S. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the social media platform used by more than 170 million Americans and owned by a China-based company, ByteDance Ltd., was required to sell TikTok’s USA operations to U.S. investors, or it would be banned. In 2024, lawmakers passed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, which was intended to bar “foreign adversaries, such as China, from targeting, surveilling, and manipulating the American people through online applications like TikTok,” a press release states. While TikTok initially said it did not intend to sell, it later revealed a proposed transaction to form a joint venture that would allow ByteDance to maintain a minority stake. In the latest update, shared by CNN, an agreement has been reached for the U.S. TikTok app to be controlled by Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX, who will own a 50% stake in the company. Certain existing investors in ByteDance will...

Rayna Reid Rayford is aware that her maternal health experience was far from an anomaly. Rayford, a lawyer and strategic communicator, had a challenging start to parenthood. Early on, when she met her now husband, they had conversations about children and agreed they wanted just one. When they embarked on that journey, it was hard for Rayford to conceive, and she experienced two consecutive miscarriages within a couple of months. The second miscarriage was so painful that she went to the emergency room. “We started to meet with fertility doctors and I started to think, ‘Is something wrong with me?’ You really start to internalize a lot. And then it was at that juncture that we actually found out we were pregnant for the third time in the calendar year,” Rayford told AFROTECH™. This was in December 2023. She is grateful to have “survived” pregnancy. She worked with a doula after the first trimester because it was important to her to have a comprehensive 360-degree support system,...

An affordable housing project supported by NBA great Allen Iverson in Newport News, VA, is moving forward. Iverson Landing 13 News reports that Iverson teamed up with developer Alvin Keels Jr. on the project named Iverson Landing, which is geared toward working families and part of an overall effort to increase housing options in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. Newport News Mayor Phillip Jones has also been vocal about affordable housing options with a goal of opening 21,000 affordable housing units by 2050, and he intends to reach it by working with emerging developers “who will shape the future of our communities,” he said in a Facebook post. This puts Iverson and Keels’ project squarely in line with a broader agenda to invest in affordable housing. The Iverson Landing will be based in Newport News, Iverson’s hometown, which he credits with shaping the person he is today — an NBA legend, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer, tech investor, and vice president of Reebok...

These two Black women leading autonomous vehicle companies are leaders to watch out for in 2026, according to Forbes. Aicha Evans Aicha Evans, who has led Zoox as CEO since 2019, oversaw a major industry milestone when Amazon acquired the self-driving auto startup in 2020 for about $1.2 billion, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. The acquisition aimed to advance ride-hailing while keeping Zoox as a standalone business under Amazon. Evans said the deal “solidifies Zoox’s impact on the industry” and expands opportunities to develop fully driverless vehicles. Before joining Zoox, Evans spent more than a decade at Intel in senior engineering and strategy roles, bringing extensive tech and operational experience to her leadership at the startup. In an interview with Bloomberg, Evans discussed the recent launch of Zoox’s self-driving shuttles in Las Vegas, calling it “more than a decade in the making.” “We finally launched it essentially to the public, which is really nice,” she said. “If...

The Weeknd has closed an unconventional catalog deal. AFROTECH™ has reported various master’s and publishing deals over the years, which include Nelly, Hit-Boy, Wiz Khalifa, and T-Pain, who all secured deals with Black woman-owned HarbourView Equity Partners. The Weeknd — also known as Abel Tesfaye — appears to be the next artist in line to secure a deal tied to his catalog. Variety reports the “Wake Me Up” artist has finalized a deal with Lyric Capital Group, an investment firm focused on music royalties, to invest in his master’s and publishing catalog through 2025, while he and his team maintain creative control and continue as shareholders and owners. Additionally, half of the artist’s publishing rights were owned by Chord Music Partners. The exact value of the deal was not disclosed . The deal is said to be a “first-of-its-kind,” per Variety. The Weeknd was not interested in the sale of his catalog, which opened doors to an agreement that allows him and his team to maintain...

Is T-Pain taking over Twitch? The “I’m Sprung” artist currently has 1.1 million followers on the platform. While speaking on “Club Shay Shay,” he shared that he’s using Twitch to take fans behind the scenes on how he develops his music, starting with the first beat, leading up to the release of a song, which can sometimes be done in the span of a week. He says most of his studio workflow is a solo grind, with his wife and children occasionally joining him to help write a few bars. “I’m making all my music on Twitch,” he said on the podcast. “Every single that I release, everything that happens right now, you can clock it from me making the first sound to putting it out. Like all the way from me making the first sound of the beat, making the whole beat, recording the vocals, and then putting it out. I can show you the entire process on Twitch. It’s been not only a liberating thing for me, but it’s turned into an eyeopener to the viewers, for other artists,” he added. And he’s not the...