Intel Capital, the corporate venturing subsidiary of semiconductor technology producer Intel, announced on Wednesday that it is widening the scope of its $125m Diversity Fund.
The fund was lauched in June 2015 to invest in startups led by women and ethnic minorities. It will now also seek out companies run by entrepreneurs from the LGBTQ community, military veterans and entrepreneurs living with a disability.
Trina Van Pelt, vice-president of Intel Capital, and Christine Herron, director at Intel Capital, who took over leadership of the fund after Lisa Lambert’s departure in May 2016, also said they will try to identify startups led by diverse teams.
Van Pelt and Herron are additionally set to encourage existing portfolio companies to further diversify their teams. As an example of the Diversity Fund’s impact at Intel, Herron pointed out that more than 60% of participants in the Intel Education Accelerator are led by women and/or people from underrepresented minorities.
Intel Capital has so far invested a total of approximately $105m in 25 diverse teams, with the Diversity Fund accounting for nearly $32m across seven portfolio companies.