Edtech CEO looks back on the promises of summer 2020: ‘It never rang true to me’

The CEO and cofounder of DC edtech startup Beanstack, learned a long time ago to be pragmatic and take advantage of whatever time you have in the limelight — because it always fades.

Reflecting on that moment nearly four years ago, after the murder of George Floyd sparked a worldwide denouncement of anti-Black racism across various industries, he knew the gains for Black people would be fleeting. Now, in 2024, he sees all the pushback against diversity in tech as a result of those gains.

Whatever the temperature of the room, Lloyd still feels the pressure of being one of the first or only Black people through a door — and what that means for those following him.

“When you’re in rooms when there’s not a lot of other people like you, I think there’s a lot of responsibility that comes with that,” Lloyd said. “And I feel that oftentimes.”

The company found success in 2014 — its first year, when it was known as Zoobean and was pitching a subscription box service for curated children’s books — with an appearance on an episode of ABC’s “Shark Tank.” Sports mogul Mark Cuban became one of the company’s investors, and the sky was the limit.

Beanstack didn’t quite reach the stratosphere. But 11 years later, the edtech company made strides through a pivot to providing local schools and libraries with a software product for K-12, student-oriented reading challenges.

The company rebranded last year and boasts over 5 billion minutes read on its platform.

With over a decade in tech under his belt, Lloyd remains optimistic for the next generation of Black entrepreneurs who will be digital natives, raised on modern technology and able to see opportunities he never even dreamed of. But Lloyd remains the pragmatist forever, never letting his hopes for the future cloud what he sees right in front of his face.

“I think we’ll occupy more and more of the important spaces of society, in all ways,” Lloyd said about Black people. “And I think that won’t come without its challenges, both within ourselves but [also,] clearly the world is pushing against Black in many ways right now..”

In the second interview of Technical.ly’s video series “Black in Tech 2024: A Dream Promised… and Deferred,” Lloyd details his skepticism when he first saw the rise of support for Black founders, his hopes for the future of Black technologists and what it means for him to be Black in tech.