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Aniyia Williams        

Founder & CEO of TINSEL; Creator, Inventor & Tech Changemaker

Aniyia Williams is a systempreneur, creator, inventor, tech changemaker, and investor. She is a principal on the Responsible Technology team at Omidyar Network, and works to help the tech world live up to its promise of changing lives for the better.

Prior to joining Omidyar Network, Williams founded Black & Brown Founders, a nonprofit which helps Black and Latinx entrepreneurs launch tech businesses. She continues to serve as the organization’s board chair. Williams is also co-founder of Zebras Unite, an entrepreneur-led movement focused on creating a more ethical and sustainable startup ecosystem through capital, culture, and community; convener of the Black Innovation Alliance, an ecosystem of organizations that support, fund, and sustain Black innovators; and co-founder of the Firefly Alliance, a community that equips women with collaborative leadership skills to move beyond racism and sexism. Previously, Williams founded the fashion tech company, Tinsel, which invented the world’s first audio necklace, designed in response to a lack of electronics developed for women.

Before becoming an entrepreneur, Williams held roles in marketing, business development, and nonprofit fundraising. She also has a background in the arts, with a decade of training as an opera singer.

Williams holds a B.A. in music, with minors in business and Italian from Penn State University. She was a Bunton-Waller Fellow and graduated with honors in Italian and musicology, as well as the Josephine Rhea Award for Excellence in Italian studies. In 2019, Williams was honored by Penn State with the esteemed Alumni Achievement Award, presented to prominent alumni 35 and younger.

Speech Topics

Unicorns vs Zebras: Money, Power & Startups in the Valley

Capitalism is a hell of a drug. When used responsibly, it can create freedom, innovation and efficiency. But unchecked, hoarding, exploitation and careless behavior can run rampant. The tech world has created a great example of this with venture capital and “unicorns”. It’s not greed and growth at all costs… it’s just business. Right? Wrong. We’re entering a new age, one where entrepreneurs want to create solutions to improve the human experience and quality of life without playing a zero sum game. The age of the zebra. In this talk, Aniyia will explain why purpose and profit do not have to be mutually exclusive, why creating alternatives to the venture capital status quo is a moral and economic imperative, and how innovation in business financing can help us solve the world’s big challenges.

How to Launch A Startup Against All Odds

If you’re an underdog who wants to take your shot at building a tech business, a different approach is needed. For many people of color, women, LGBTQ, baby boomers, and the “others” - the game is harder to play IF we're using the same playbook as Musk, Gates, Jobs and Zuck. In this presentation, Aniyia will share her recipe for finding strength, flushing out your idea, launching, and making your first dollars against all odds.

Health, Wealth & Love for Busy People

Today’s expectations of a happy life are at best, unrealistic, and at worst, oppressive. Are you hurtling toward burnout on a crusade to build the perfect life? Been there. Are you stressed about money, even when you’re making a decent bit of it? Done that. Are you seeing communication with your significant other get rockier by the day? Yeah, sounds about right. Know that you are not alone, and while you probably can’t "have it all", you’d be surprised to find how much joy can come from letting go of what you don’t need. Aniyia will share some hard lessons she’s learned about finding happiness, how to think differently about what we want, and how to get it.

Finding Your Purpose When the World is On Fire

Some days it feels like we are doomed. Maybe we are. Either way, we should make the most of our lives while we’re here. The key is to NOT make it about winning or losing, but deftly playing an infinite game. That’s only possible when you are able to lead with the reason why you do what you do. In this talk, Aniyia will share ways to search within to discover your WHY, distinguish what is necessary and real for YOU, and how to use this as a compass to navigate the world…. as long as it keeps turning.

Unforgettable: How to Become an Interesting Person

Spoiler alert: you already are! You just need some help with bringing the most interesting pieces to the surface. When we want to be seen as interesting or valuable, it actually links to our fundamental human desire to feel connection and belonging. During this presentation, Aniyia will explain why we want people to like us. She’ll then provide a framework to uncover the most unique and fascinating parts of yourself, expand your repertoire, and apply it to your interactions.

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