Fizz Partners with Breakthrough Ventures to Connect Aspiring Founders at HBCUs with Capital and Mentorship

Fizz, the social media platform created by Gen Z for Gen Z to form authentic digital communities, today announces a new partnership with Breakthrough Ventures, a startup accelerator for young early-stage student founders. Fizz will provide Breakthrough Ventures with advertising credits to promote the accelerator on its platform. Through Fizz, Breakthrough will recruit founders to apply for its next cohort, with a focus on reaching aspiring entrepreneurs at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

Gen Z isn’t waiting until graduation to start company building. Across college campuses, students are turning ideas into businesses. Fizz co-founders Teddy Solomon and Ashton Cofer are first-hand examples. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, they felt disconnected from their classmates while starting their first year at Stanford remotely. They built Fizz to foster real connections among college students. Now available at over 300 schools, including every HBCU, and backed by $41M in VC funding, Fizz has become a trusted digital space for Gen Z to engage, share and build community.

“HBCUs are some of the tightest-knit and most intimate colleges in the nation, and HBCU Fizz communities are a reflection of how authentic connection over shared experiences builds trust and community,” said Teddy Solomon, Co-Founder and CEO of Fizz. " Through this partnership with Breakthrough Ventures, we’re bringing more value to these Fizz communities by giving aspiring entrepreneurs the opportunity to get resources that will help them turn their ideas into something bigger"

Breakthrough Ventures was co-founded by Roman Scott (Harvard JD/MBA, Stanford BS/MS) and Itbaan Nafi (Stanford BS/MS), recent graduates who deeply understand the barriers young founders face. Together, they bring experience across design, engineering, policy and entrepreneurship, united by a shared mission to build opportunity and generational wealth for their communities. Since launching, Breakthrough’s impact is already evident, with founders from its inaugural 19-person cohort collectively raising more than $10 million in follow-on funding.

“Access to capital, legal resources, and mentorship shouldn’t be a privilege — they should be part of the starting line for any rising founder,” said Roman Scott, Co-Founder of Breakthrough Ventures. “Partnering with Fizz to gain access to their audience at HBCUs allows us to reach more ambitious students who could be the next great leaders of our generation. The founders in our cohort include healthcare workers turned entrepreneurs to formerly incarcerated youths who’ve become CEOs — proof that innovative business ideas come from all walks of life.”

Founders who are selected for the Breakthrough Ventures accelerator will receive:

• Grants: Up to $10K in non-dilutive funding for selected founders.

• Mentorship: Founders will be paired with top venture investors and seasoned CEOs for guidance throughout their entrepreneurial journey. Mentors include executives from LinkedIn, Jamba, Coactive, Diagon, and more.

• Resources: Access to up to $100K in compute credits from Amazon and NVIDIA.

• Demo Day: A marquee showcase connecting founders to over 100 institutional investors, including prominent firms like Sequoia, a16z, Mayfield, Lightspeed, NEA and Khosla.

“We’ve seen what our peers are capable of as Fizz took off right before our eyes. Others across the country can do it too– especially if they get a seat at the table and can access the network and resources. We’re here to make that happen and do whatever it takes to help our peers, within the HBCU community and beyond, leave the world in a better place than they found it with their ventures.” said Itbaan Nafi, Co-Founder of Breakthrough Ventures.

To learn more about Fizz, visit https://fizz.social

To learn more about Breakthrough, visit https://breakvc.com

About Fizz

Fizz was launched at Stanford in 2021 as an authentic social community for updates on campus life. Now active on over 300 college campuses nationwide, Fizz facilitates real conversations and the daily thoughts of college students who can express themselves in a moderated environment. Fizz completely changes the college culture, creating an authentic, fun and private online space.

About Breakthrough Ventures

Breakthrough Ventures is a startup accelerator supporting early-stage student founders from all backgrounds. Founded to expand access to entrepreneurship and build generational wealth, Breakthrough provides non-dilutive grants, mentorship from leading investors and CEOs, legal and technical resources, and a Demo Day with top-tier venture firms. Founders from Breakthrough’s inaugural cohort have collectively raised over $10 million in follow-on funding.

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