By Katherine Olives (Zahn Center)
At the Zahn Innovation Summit on March 6th, you’ll hear from local government officials, investors, and entrepreneurs. Each of our guests will share their expert opinions and advice on technology, entrepreneurship, and more. As a teaser, I sat down with one of our featured guests who will speak on our investor panel, Clayton Banks, Co-Founder and CEO of Silicon Harlem.
The mission of Silicon Harlem is to transform Harlem and other urban markets into Innovation and Technology hubs. Under Clayton’s leadership, Silicon Harlem has been able to partner with the Department of Education for New York City to establish an after school STEM based startup accelerator, collaborate with the NYC Mayor’s office to assess wireless broadband in Upper Manhattan, and coordinate a virtual startup incubator for tech based entrepreneurs.
To Clayton, Silicon Harlem is citizen-centric. He says, “This isn’t about how great we can we can be, it’s about what we believe our citizens deserve. It’s about making sure their voices are heard and represented across the board. I make sure Harlem’s voice is always at the table when it comes to tech.”
In his short interview with me, his passion for technology, innovation, and Harlem’s multidimensional
community came across. Clayton loves what he does, and I had the pleasure of speaking with him to get a feel for what he thinks the future looks like.
Katherine Olives: What are the biggest trends in the tech and entrepreneurship scene in Harlem right now?
Read his answer here