Peanut Founder Appears on Women in Tech Podcast

Peanut CEO Michelle Kennedy has appeared on the Women Tech Charge podcast, talking about her experiences working in the technology industry.

The podcast, produced by the Evening Standard, aims to inspire women to pursue their ideas and get involved in the typically male-dominated sector.

Kennedy previously worked at Badoo, before taking the decision to create a social networking app for mothers. After being the first of her friends to have a child, she wanted a way to connect with women who were in a similar situation.

She said on Women Tech Charge: “Peanut, for me, was something where I felt I had to do something for an issue that was affecting my life. I wasn’t dating in my personal life. And, I could just see this huge market and this huge potential and all these underserved women.”

Peanut secured a significant amount of funding from a female-only venture capital firm in 2017. The backing was on-brand for Kennedy, who is vocal on the issue of women being overlooked when it comes to investments.

The entrepreneur noted: “What we’re seeing is the VC community investing in male-pattern baldness and erectile dysfunction. I’m not saying that’s not deserving and worthy, but let’s have a bit of investment in menopause and other life changes for women too.

“Can we just keep investing in women because generally speaking women are trying to solve problems that affect women.”

A recent Atomico report found that 93% of European VC investments in 2018 went to startups with male CEOs.

The Bumble Fund is continuing to help support products created by female founders, and recently welcomed Serena Williams as a high-profile investor.

Listen to the full podcast here.