iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Happens a few times a year in my town and our temple always has extra security. My kids are one of only a handful of Jews in their grades. Email from this week:

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

Not meaning to hijack your post, and I’m not your candidate, but this is my world. If there’s an opportunity to use your platform to create real impact by shedding light on what most founders actually experience, not the ones we currently see in the news, I gladly raise my hand to help. 🙂

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

This type of reporting is sorely needed. There’s a huge opportunity to include real-world stories that reflect the diversity of founders, not just those who are VC-funded. In H1 2025, only 0.8% of VC $ went to women. In 2024, just 0.4% went to Black founders. These founders demand a spotlight.

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AG Andrea Joy Campbell @massago.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

H-1B visas help U.S. employers fill critical staff shortages in our schools, hospitals, and research institutions. I won't stand by as the Trump Administration imposes a massive fee hike that harms our residents and economy.

A graphic with title text at the top that says “AG Andrea Joy Campbell is suing the Trump administration for imposing an unlawful $100,000 fee on H-1B visas.” Under the text there is an image of a hand holding a passport and another hand holding several hundred dollar bills fanned out. Behind the images is a gradient of the following scent repeated throughout the graphic that says the following, “ physicians, researchers, nurses, teachers, surgeons”

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George Takei @georgetakei.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

Watch what they do, not what they say.

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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

Am I crazy or did we just have a convo about how we can't fund cancer research?

Senator Marsha Blackburn tweets: "We're going to build a big, beautiful Golden Dome."

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

Neither of our kids (14 & 11) knew the beans, beans musical fruit rhyme. Like, had never even heard about it. How is that possible?

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

Fundraising advice isn't written for most of us. So I'm writing the book that is. If you’ve ever felt like the fundraising advice out there wasn’t meant for *you*, my book "Fundraising for the Rest of Us" *is*. Help shape this book by becoming a beta reader! allisonbyers.beehiiv.com/subscribe

allisonbyers.beehiiv.com

Fundraising for the Rest of Us

A radically practical guide to navigating the opaque, biased world of startup funding. Built for underestimated founders by one who’s been there.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 19/05/2025

My dog just barked at my stomach growling.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 19/05/2025

I started a firestorm back when Twitter was a useful place, and I feel it's only right to make this statement here as well. Black licorice is delicious.

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Nancy Levine Stearns @nancylevinestearns.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

💥 A new survey "indicates 20% of leaders at companies who’ve rolled back DEI policies say they are bringing back DEI initiatives, but quietly, not with public fanfare." wtop.com/business-fin...

wtop.com

Many companies that rolled back DEI policies are quietly bringing them back - WTOP News

More than half of companies that have done away with DEI policies or scaled them back say it was political pressure or public scrutiny that led to the decision.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

There goes another women-focused program. Cool timing, Dell.

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Qasim Rashid, Esq. @qasimrashid.com · 15/05/2025

Georgia bans organ donation of someone who died w/o their consent—but Georgia’s 6 week abortion ban is now forcing a brain dead woman to stay alive w/o her consent because she was 9 weeks pregnant when she went brain dead. Even a corpse in Georgia has more rights over its body than do women & girls

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Acyn @acyn.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

Weber: I'm glad you're addressing us instead of speaking to the camera. … AOC: There are 13.7 million Americans on the other side of that screen. Hello. I’m talking to you because I work for you. They deserve to see what is happening here..

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Ari Berman @ariberman.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

Breaking: federal district court orders North Carolina to certify state supreme court election for Democrat Allison Riggs & rejects Republican attempt to overturn election and throw out thousands of votes. Huge victory for democracy & fair elections www.courtlistener.com/docket/69489...

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Hillary Rodham Clinton @hillaryclinton.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

The Trump budget in one chart: Cut programs that help families and make America a leader of the world, pour money into kidnapping grad students and deporting toddlers.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

You can be ambitious without losing yourself. You can build something real without collapsing. Let's stop making collapse the price of founder admission.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

Scroobious is a startup too, and I'm doing my best to build and lead through this lens. I've raised over $11M across my companies and I've never been more intentional about how I think about capitalization. I'm forging a different kind of success story; one where your company thrives and you do too.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

There are more capitalization options now than ever. Companies like Scroobious are building the infrastructure to make them accessible so that founders can fundraise on their terms and connect with aligned capital that values sustainability over sacrifice.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

We need to ask - returns for who? At what cost? In 2024, just nine firms secured the majority of the $71 billion raised by U.S. VCs. What if we redefine success? What if we stop rewarding the burnout arc? What if we see sustainability and balance as signs of strong leadership?

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

Founders pitch their stories to investors, but investors have also pitched us a story. In their version, the "founder mode" archetype wins because they believe that kind of personal sacrifice leads to outsized returns for themselves and their limited partners.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

So, why *is* this the standard? Why is the ideal founder one who sacrifices everything? A lot of that narrative comes from venture capital.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

That version of "founder mode" gets glorified in startup culture. We treat overextension like a badge of honor. We celebrate martyrdom as commitment. And we wonder why so many brilliant founders burn out or disappear.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

I went "founder mode" and ended up with shingles in my 30s. Not metaphorical burnout. Actual, body-shutting-down, stress-induced illness. I did what we're told to do and tied my identity to my business. I pushed through everything and made it look like strength.

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Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 04/05/2025

Thinking about devastating cuts to NSF: US gov-funded science has been the engine upon which most of the tech wealth was generated. But the oligarchs (currently hoarding much of that $) think it’s their own brilliance & not the accident of standing close to the scientific engine that made them rich.

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Hillary Rodham Clinton @hillaryclinton.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

There's strong evidence that women's participation in security efforts makes countries safer. That's why leaders in over 100 countries have taken action to further it. One of them—who signed the U.S. Women, Peace & Security Act into law in 2017—was Donald Trump.

Tweet from Pete Hegseth: This morning, I proudly ENDED the “Women, Peace & Security” (WPS) program inside the
@DeptofDefense. WPS is yet another woke divisive/social justice/Biden initiative that overburdens our commanders and troops — distracting from our core task: WAR-FIGHTING. WPS is a UNITED NATIONS program pushed by feminists and left-wing activists. Politicians fawn over it; troops HATE it. DoD will hereby executive the minimum of WPS required by statute, and fight to end the program for our next budget. GOOD RIDDANCE WPS!

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SlenderSherbet @slendersherbet.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

If you've had one of those days when all you really need is a baby bear trying to catch snowflakes, here's a baby bear trying to catch snowflakes.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

Remember when navigation systems were widely adopted, and people drove into lakes because they blindly followed the directions on the screen? I feel like we're witnessing that with AI-generated content: total reliance and faith in the output, despite what we see in real life.

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Parker Butler @parkerbutler.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

Just incredible

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

Listening to Brandi Carlile this afternoon. You should too.

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Acyn @acyn.bsky.social · 28/04/2025

Pritzker: As a Ukrainian American Jew who built a holocaust museum… let me say this to Donald Trump: Stop tearing down the constitution in the name of my ancestors. Do not claim that your authoritarian power grabs are about combatting anti-semitism.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

I built Scroobious to create a space where founders can pitch with authenticity and be discovered by investors who are looking for what they uniquely bring to the table. Where networking feels like connection, not performance.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

The worst part is you start to think it’s your fault. That maybe if you just tried harder, made more connections, or followed up faster, it would work. I've been here many times. But it’s not you. It’s the system. You don’t need to hustle harder, you need rooms that actually see you.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

Even when you’re invited in, you feel like you have to perform to be taken seriously. You spend hours preparing, showing up, smiling through the awkwardness, only to leave wondering if anyone truly saw you. This drains your energy, erodes your confidence, and wastes time you can’t afford to lose.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

Founders are constantly told to go to events, cold DM investors, and build relationships. But no one talks about how exhausting, expensive, and often fruitless that can feel when you're always the only one in the room who looks like you, talks like you, or lives like you.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

“If one more person tells me to ‘network more,’ I might scream.” Let’s talk about the unspoken cost of networking when you don’t come from wealth, privilege, or an insider circle. If you’ve ever left a “networking opportunity” feeling more invisible than when you arrived, you’re not alone.

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NPR @npr.org · 28/04/2025

French violinist and social media influencer Esther Abrami releases her new album, Women, featuring music by female composers in a bid to redress historic biases.

npr.org

Violinist Esther Abrami uncovers 'hidden treasure' of music by women

French violinist and social media influencer Esther Abrami releases her new album, Women, featuring music by female composers in a bid to redress historic biases.

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

This is your reminder to review the pictures on your website. Is everyone a guy? Is everyone white? If you don't have lived experience as an underrepresented identity, homogeneity might not catch your eye - you have to intentionally evaluate and update.

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Judge Luttig @judgeluttig.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

This — the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s arrest today of a sitting judge — against the backdrop that the President of the United States is, at this same moment, defying an April 10 Order of the Supreme Court of the United States

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

I stumbled upon that book at an independent bookstore as well and had the same experience. It and the sequel live on our coffee table. 🙂

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

The person in front of me on the plane is watching Fox News and I feel like I should have the option to blur it out.

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Hillary Rodham Clinton @hillaryclinton.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

This is your regular reminder that executive orders are not royal decrees. Because America has no king.

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Laura Bassett @lebassett.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

My brain can only read “Vladimir, STOP” in the flirtatious whine of a teenage girl being tickled her boyfriend

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Nancy Levine Stearns @nancylevinestearns.bsky.social · 23/04/2025

💥 BREAKING: Levi Strauss shareholders voted today to reject a proposal calling on the company to cease / abolish all DEI efforts (tally TBD). LEVI Board: “Diversity and inclusion principles are critical in ensuring that our products reflect and are relevant to our diverse global consumer base.”

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Molly White @molly.wiki · 23/04/2025

The House Financial Services Republicans and the White House (now deleted) tagged either a hacked or fake account in their Twitter announcements that Paul Atkins was sworn in as SEC Chair. The "Atkins" account immediately started asking for crypto.

Tweet by an account named Paul S Atkins, with a blue check and a parody label. "Hi crypto believers! I'm all in on this revolution 🚀 Let's keep the dream alive-send some love my way:" (followed by several blurred wallet addresses, and an AI image of a bull exploding from some bitcoins)

Tweet by The White House
@WhiteHouse

🇺🇸 @PaulSAtkins has officially been sworn in as the Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, @SECGov, by @SecScottBessent in the Oval Office!

Tweet by Financial Services GOP

@FinancialCmte

NEW: The Committee congratulates @PaulSAtkins as he was sworn in as the next Chair of @SECGov. He will bring a common-sense approach to regulation and usher in an era of prosperity and innovation to make U.S. capital markets the envy of the world.

sec.gov/newsroom/press...

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Jess Piper @piperformissouri.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

Previous to the FDA, folks would put chalk and plaster of Paris in milk to make it appear white. They could also add formaldehyde to cover the smell and taste of spoiled milk.

A screenshot of a Reuters article stating that the US FDA suspended milk quality test workforce cuts.

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Kathy Roberts Forde @krforde.bsky.social · 21/04/2025

Let's go Big 10!!!!! Let's go MA Higher Ed Compact!!!!! The only way to stand up to the Trump admin's attacks on higher education is to stand together. This takes WORK. If you're in #highered, ask your admin and faculty to join a compact to share legal, financial, comms, and strategic resources.

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Chris Kluwe, adjudicated poaster @chriswarcraft.bsky.social · 20/04/2025

Personally, I think it should be front page news for at least a month if a sitting US President is using falsified evidence to try and deny due process to a man who has committed no crime, but that’s just me

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Allison Byers @apbyers.bsky.social · 17/04/2025

My grandma turned 97 today. One of her constant phrases is, "If you can't laugh, what's the point?" Laughter and perilous times are not mutually exclusive. Humor is powerful and healing. We all need more of it right now.

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