Measuring Social Impact in Investment

Investing to make a return both financial AND societal isn't new, but the opportunities to reach and build businesses in communities that have been underserved by tech are larger than ever. One example is the business opportunity presented by hairstylist platform Mayvenn, which a16z recently backed.

In this segment of the a16z Podcast, Kesha Cash (founder and general partner of the Impact America Fund, also an investor in Mayvenn) discusses how she puts her fund’s money to work in markets that target underserved Americans. Cash is joined by a16z’s Tawny Holguin (who leads our seed and early scouting efforts) to breakdown the intricacies -- and opportunities -- of so-called “impact investing.” Do core business principles change at all? But then how does impact get measured? And what happens when you connect more communities to tech?