InkedIn, on its part, announced a new $500,000 grants program for Black entrepreneurs as part of its broader Black History Month initiatives, which are designed to both recognize and encourage career opportunities for Black communities.

LinkedIn, according to

LinkedIn is proudly and intentionally investing in multi-hyphenate Black professionals and entrepreneurs by amplifying and elevating Black business stories on our platform and working with strategic partners to provide grants which help more Black-owned businesses get off the ground and accelerate growth.

According to LinkedIn's data, the percentage of Black entrepreneurs launching new ventures recently has grown-thus, in part, responding to both the pandemic and the growth of remote and flexible work that has generated many more opportunities for those who may have only had less bandwidth or capacity to pursue their passions.

It now seeks to fuel those efforts with more incentives and motivation as it dedicates its funding to help accelerate both digitalundivided and Blavity.org's annual Black entrepreneurship fellowship programs.

In the meantime, LinkedIn is also hosting a Black Entrepreneurs Summit on February 22nd where LinkedIn staff and LinkedIn Learning instructors will be presenting sessions on various topics.

8 a.m. PT: Rise of Black Entrepreneurship in the U.S. with Marissa Cazem, Seyi Kukoyi, and Melinda Emerson
9 a.m. PT: Unlocking Community and Resources to Thrive with Chris Arceneaux, Guy Kawasaki, and Jay Clouse
12pm PT: Allyship in Action - Unconscious Bias with Trish Lindo and Stacey Gordon
Finally, LinkedIn's also making available several courses from LinkedIn Learning to offer more educational insights to business owners – and with 26% of Black business owners saying that they turn to online communities like LinkedIn for advice, this could be a big impact.

The different projects will help support Black business owners in taking the next step and possibly play a key role in helping them set up their project.