ChatGPT and a dream is all you need to build something remarkable in today's world. This revelation comes from Brian Brackine, Managing Partner of Lightship Capital, a venture fund with $1 billion under management dedicated to underrepresented entrepreneurs. The traditional barriers to entry—costly technology, complex coding, expensive infrastructure—have fallen away thanks to AI and cloud services. What remains is the pure currency of creativity, something our community has in abundance.
Brackine shatters common misconceptions about securing venture funding. Forget the notion that you need to corner investors at networking events or force relationships. The real path to attracting investment mirrors professional sports: demonstrate excellence in your craft, generate consistent revenue, and let investors discover you. "The way to get money from a venture capitalist is to stay home, work on the business, crush it, revenue, revenue, revenue... And then let me discover you and say, can I have a piece of this thing that you've built?" This approach stands in stark contrast to pitching an idea nobody wants.
Perhaps the most powerful insight from Brackine addresses the psychological barriers many Black entrepreneurs face even after securing funding. He calls it the "scarcity mindset"—the tendency to conservatively hoard capital rather than boldly investing in growth. Nearly all founders he funds eventually hear the same feedback: "You haven't spent enough, you're not growing fast enough." This hesitation to hire, market, and scale ultimately limits business potential. As Brackine eloquently puts it, "It's like being afraid to go outside. Guess what? You'll never be outside." For those ready to overcome these limitations and think bigger, opportunities abound, particularly at events like Black Tech Week and Afrotech where ambitious, globally-minded entrepreneurs gather. Ready to push past what's holding you back? As Brackine reminds us: "It's great outside."

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