Hi all —

Here are 4 stats I think about a lot:

• Drift is part of the just 2% of VC-backed startups led by Latinx founders.
• 98% of Latinx-led companies report less than $1 million in ARR.
• Only 17 of the CEOs in the S&P 500 identify as Latinx.
• Just 8% of Latinx-owned businesses operate in tech.

These numbers have always been conflicting to me.

I’m proud that we’re bucking the trends, but I can’t help but be disheartened that these numbers are still so stark in 2021. Especially with the Latinx community making up roughly 19% of the overall U.S. population.

Diversity and equal representation make our businesses stronger. They make for better ideas. They serve as inspiration for the next generation.

My Drift Co-founder Elias Torres and I do everything we can to be the Latinx business role models we didn’t have growing up — or through most of our careers, to be honest.

And this year, at the end of Hispanic Heritage Month, I’m presented with a new stat. Drift is now part of the less than 1% of all tech startups with Latinx founders to reach unicorn status.

I can’t help but think about how far we’ve come since I was learning English from The Brady Bunch and Gilligan’s Island in our apartment in Queens, and how far we still have yet to go.

Because promoting diversity and inclusion isn’t just my responsibility. It’s everyone’s.

So, seek out opinions that differ from your own. Ask more questions of the people who don’t look like you, or come from where you come from. And never ever stop learning.

How do you champion diversity and inclusion? Text me at +1-212-380-1036 and let me know.

-DC