Pharrell Williams backed this AI platform to uplift Black media

When Adedayo Fashanu immigrated to the United States from Nigeria at 15, she witnessed a lack of nuance in how media covered the Black diaspora. So she decided to take the problem on herself.   

In 2020 she founded TANTV, a media outlet focused on covering Black and African community news throughout the African continent, the US and the DC region. The publishing company is now leaning more into technology through Syndex, its artificial intelligence-driven platform aggregating news from fellow niche, multicultural publications in a social media-style feed. 

She hopes the platform nudges people to learn more about one another. 

“If you get that exposure to these communities,” Fashanu told Technical.ly, “you’re understanding their differences. You get to cherish each other more.”

The product nabbed Prince George’s County-based TANTV a $50,000 check in the fall and a spot in the top 30 finalists of Black Ambition, an organization started by the A-list musician and fashion designer Pharrell Williams that provides mentorship and capital to companies with Black and Latino founders. 

The capital from Black Ambition will be used for marketing and product development, per TANTV COO Abolaji Omitogun. Syndex is in early alpha testing, he said, and users can sign up to be involved in the early stages.

TANTV is actively raising a $1.5 million seed round and has raised $250,000 to date. 

Using AI to personalize news feeds

Syndex uses AI and machine learning to personalize news feeds, pulling from fellow outlets with a multicultural focus. It’s similar to a social media platform, Omitogun explained, because users can comment, like, dislike or repost articles. There will also be a feature to chat with fellow users, he said. 

TANTV is partnering with outlets across the US, including historic Black community publications like the Kansas City Defender and The Skanner in Portland, Oregon. The goal is to expand audience reach, which Fashanu said can then convince advertisers to put money toward the news site. Syndex boasts advertisers like Walmart and Google, and the team also worked with the Lenfest Institute for Journalism and Vox Media to develop the platform. 

“When we come together more like a collective, we can tell advertisers, ‘Hey, you can reach multicultural audiences en masse,’” she said. 

With the recent election, and the anti-immigration and often racist rhetoric from President-elect Trump and other leaders in the upcoming administration, Fashanu said she finds platforms like this one important to fostering compassion.

“There’s even more need for a platform that says we all belong, in a way that we can understand each other,” she said. 

Fashanu felt like an outsider when she first came to the US as a teenager. For her, Syndex is more than a platform: It’s proof that immigrants and Black founders can thrive through innovation and technology.  

“Black storytelling isn’t monolithic — our experiences are rich, layered and deeply nuanced,” she said. “My journey is about breaking barriers and creating pathways for others to follow, ensuring that the fight for equity doesn’t just survive — it transforms systems.”

Getting access to support, not just capital

Fashanu and COO Omitogun applied for Black Ambition in May and wrapped in November as a semi-finalist. 

As a Black founder, Fashanu faces challenges in getting capital and getting in the room with investors, she said. That’s why Black Ambition stood out to her. 

“We don’t get enough visibility,” said Fashanu, who’s also an alum of Halcyon programming. “We’re always on the look[out] for programs that mention us, or that see us.”

Black Ambition receives about 2,000 applications each year and counts other DC-area companies like Venture for T.H.E.M. among its prior finalists. TANTV first received three months of mentoring and coaching on pitches as one of the 250 semi-finalists. Fashanu and Omitogun also met Black Ambition’s Williams and attended a weeklong summit in New York alongside 30 other finalists in November. 

Since this cycle’s close, Fashanu remains in touch with lawyers and gets legal counseling through the program. 

“It’s a whole ongoing process, which I very much appreciate,” Fashanu said. “Because a lot of these things, if we were to put dollars to it, it will cost a lot of money for a startup to take on on their own.”

The entire process has been validating, Fashanu said, and shows her — and funders — that the concept can work. 

“We’re looking at talking [to] investors,” Fashanu said, “and using this traction as proof that there’s something here.”

This story, and all of Technical.ly's immigration reporting, is made possible by the WES Mariam Assefa Fund.

The WES Mariam Assefa Fund supports catalytic efforts to create more inclusive economies for immigrants and refugees in the US and Canada. It works closely with organizations and leaders focused on ensuring more equitable access to opportunity and wealth.