Focus Areas
Invest in companies with business models that have traditionally achieved venture returns AND that focus on people with disabilities as part of their target audience.
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Education
Custom language, user interface and other voice and visual design technologies are enabling new methods and greater access for teaching, learning, skills development, and training.
Employment
Public policy, a DEI movement and shifting cultural awareness around disability have converged to spark substantial demand from employers to become more educated in disability recruitment and retention, along with technology and human capital support to hire, on-board, support and retain a more diverse workforce.
Technology / Products
Vast advancements have been made to ensure that no member of society feels unable to use technology. Technology can lower barriers that people with disabilities encounter in their daily lives. It can allow them to participate and enjoy the benefits of the digital society, with the same access to information as everyone else.
Health Care / Life Sciences
Aging baby boomers with longer life expectancies are increasing the prevalence of various disabilities. As aging individuals and their families seek independence, opportunities will ripen to support older adults through technology, personal services and products.
Socialization
Changes in technology, coupled with a design-driven awareness of how disabled individuals connect to and interact with one another through technology, has begun to grow communities around dating, specific mental or physical challenges, and shared interests.
Housing
Finding a good home in the community is essential for people with disabilities and their families. This includes seeking investments in social-minded operators and/or groups of families to own and maintain the ever-increasing market demand. This results safe, accessible, sustainable, affordable and inclusive housing.
It turns out, Apple CEO Tim Cook’s famous quip
about the company investing in good accessibility
practices—that the tech giant does it not for ‘the
bloody ROI’—cuts both ways. A company, whether
titanic like Apple or tiny like Hiki, should make their
product(s) as accessible as possible because it’s
morally right. By the same token, however, it surely is
not lost on Cook (or Karriem) that accessible products
are better, well-rounded products that will have a
definitive effect on the return on investment.
Peter Korn, Director of Accessibility at Amazon
Lab126 said: ‘We share the company's vision to
help people with speech impairments live more
independently through voice. We were delighted to
support them through an Alexa Fund investment
and now through an Alexa integration via their
mobile app.
Floreo is currently being used as a supplementary learning
tool by schools, therapy practices, medical practitioners,
and parents. In this video, Ravindran describes what led to
the development of this virtual reality tool for individuals
with autism, how Floreo went about securing academic
research partners, and the importance of Small Business
Technology Transfer funding to the development and
testing of the program. Floreo is currently running several
studies, including a study in collaboration with the Center
for Autism Research at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
The Department of Defense, intelligence agencies and
other federal programs are increasingly deploying
emerging artificial intelligence technologies and
accurately labeled data to train AI systems. Enabled
Intelligence’s neurodiverse workforce of highly-trained
U.S. based employees provide the subject matter
expertise and secure systems able to handle the
government's most sensitive data.
Opya began with a vision to transform autism services for children by integrating care and providing digital tools to help clinicians and parents create the best possible outcomes. Since their founding in 2016, they have provided behavioral, speech, and occupational services to hundreds of Opya families. Opya strives to provide the best outcomes and experience for their clients and the Opya families they work with.
Portfolio Snapshot
Barry Dean
Co-Founder & CEO
Zero Coupon Note From DOF to Supporter
- Commitment Period: 7 – 10 years
- Coupon = 0 – 3%
- Supporter Chooses Term and Coupon
- Return of Capital + Interest at the end of the Term
- Social Impact Returns Measured Annually
- No Management Fees
- Annual Audits: Baker Tilly
All investment net profits will stay in the 501c(3) DOF becomes an “Evergreen Fund”