Comparison · 10 material differences
BLCK VC vs LAVA
This comparison was generated on request from the records. It carries no editorial verdict and is not indexed. The published comparisons are listed on the compare page.
Read down each column for one organization, across a row for the difference. A bronze mark at the left of a cell means the organizations differ on that row. A dash or “not published” means the organization does not disclose the fact; it is not a zero.
Verified September 2026
Networking organization
Verified September 2026 BLCK VC
Black venture capital investors, plus Black operators and recent graduates seeking to move into investing roles
Networking organization
LAVA
Participants in the Los Angeles venture ecosystem: venture capitalists, limited partners, family offices, angel investors, founders of venture-backed companies, and the…
What the records say
- Maximum age at joining: BLCK VC: No published maximum age at joining; LAVA: Young VC membership requires the member to be employed by a venture firm and under 40.
- Role or title: BLCK VC: No published role or title; LAVA: VC Partner membership is for partners at venture firms, or analysts and associates at those firms.
- Geographic restriction: BLCK VC: No published geographic restriction; LAVA: Los Angeles and Southern California focus.
- Annual dues: BLCK VC: Not publicly disclosed: no membership dues are published; BLCK VC is funded by corporate sponsors and donations; LAVA: $485 a year.
Side by side
| BLCK VC | LAVA | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Networking organization | Networking organization |
| Founded | 2018 (Founded in 2018 by Sydney Sykes, then at New Enterprise Associates, and Frederik Groce, then at Storm Ventures; both now serve as board co-chairs) | 1984 (LAVA's About page says it was established in 1984 as the Los Angeles Venture Club; its homepage gives 1985. The two dates were not reconciled.) |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, United States | Los Angeles, United States |
| Geographic footprint | Eight chapters across North America: Atlanta, Boston, the DMV (Washington DC area), Los Angeles, the Midwest, New York City, San Francisco and Toronto | Greater Los Angeles and Southern California |
| Members | Not publicly disclosed: BLCK VC does not publish a community or member count on its public pages | Not publicly disclosed |
| Chapters | 8 | No chapters. LAVA organises internally into industry committees, affinity groups and special interest groups rather than geographic chapters. |
| Primary audience | Black venture capital investors, plus Black operators and recent graduates seeking to move into investing roles | Participants in the Los Angeles venture ecosystem: venture capitalists, limited partners, family offices, angel investors, founders of venture-backed companies, and the professional services firms around them |
| Typical member | Members are Black investors working in venture capital, alongside participants in the organisation's pipeline programmes: operators training to become angel, scout or venture investors, and candidates preparing for entry-level analyst, associate and senior associate roles. | LAVA's own description covers limited partners, venture capitalists, family offices, angel investors, founders, incubators, accelerators, universities, researchers, mentors, government officials and legal, accounting, marketing and PR service providers. Its membership tiers price these groups differently, with separate rates for entrepreneurs, investors, VC partners, limited partners and academics. |
| Qualification | ||
| Maximum age at joining | No published maximum age at joining | Young VC membership requires the member to be employed by a venture firm and under 40Carries a reduced rate and access to young-VC events.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Role or title | No published role or title | VC Partner membership is for partners at venture firms, or analysts and associates at those firmsGives access to investor-only events.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Geographic restriction | No published geographic restriction | Los Angeles and Southern California focusThe academic researcher rate is described as a discounted rate for local academics.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Invitation required | No | No |
| Sponsor required | Not documented | No |
| Application process | Applicants complete an online form linked from the Get Involved page and, once accepted, join the community's Slack portal. The three programmes (Black Venture Institute, Breaking into Venture and the Scout Network) have separate intakes. No sponsorship, interview or committee review is described publicly. | Membership is bought online through LAVA's member portal by selecting a category. There is no published application review, sponsorship or interview stage; category eligibility appears to rest on self-declaration. |
| Selectivity | Not publicly disclosed: no eligibility criteria or acceptance data are published | Not publicly disclosed. Some events are invitation-only within the membership (investor-only and LP/VC-only formats), but membership itself is open paid enrolment. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | Not publicly disclosed: no membership dues are published; BLCK VC is funded by corporate sponsors and donationsverified September 2026 · source ↗ | $485 a yearPremium individual membership, annual ($50 a month on the monthly plan)verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosed. BLCK VC is a 501(c)(3) funded by sponsors and donations, and publishes no price for membership or programmes. | Not publicly disclosed; no joining fee appears alongside the published dues.verified September 2026 |
| Programme fee | Not publicly disclosed: no fees are published for the Black Venture Institute, Breaking into Venture or the Scout Networkverified September 2026 | LAVA's Corporate tier is listed at $1,200 for up to 15 employees while Corporate PLUS is listed at $1,860 for up to four; the description of what each covers is inconsistent on the join page and was recorded as published. |
| Membership term | Not documented | Annual, with a monthly option on the premium individual tier |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | Chapter events run by volunteer leads in eight cities and regions, plus programme cohorts and community activity on Slack | Live and virtual events year-round, including investor round tables, syndication screenings, VC check-ins and private mixers, plus annual events such as Meet the VC, First Look SoCal and the LAVA Awards |
| Peer forums | Slack-based member portal plus city and regional chapters; cohort-based programmes run separately | Industry committees across more than a dozen sectors, affinity groups (Women In LAVA, Young VCs at LAVA, university alumni groups), special interest groups and sector divisions |
| Confidentiality | Could not be independently verified: no published confidentiality policy was found | Not publicly disclosed |
| Time commitment | Not documented | Not documented |
| Organized as | Chapter-based, Virtual, Cohort-based, Event-focused | Event-focused, Virtual |
| Confidential peer forums | Partial | Partial |
| Local chapters | Yes | No |
| Virtual membership | Yes | Yes |
| Online community | Yes | Yes |
| Member directory | Not documented | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Yes | Partial |
| Leadership development | Yes | No |
| Retreats | No | No |
| Travel | No | No |
| Family programming | No | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | No | No |
| Next-generation programming | Yes | Yes |
| Investment discussions | Yes | Yes |
| Investment opportunities | Partial | Yes |
| Philanthropic component | No | No |
| Networking emphasis | High | High |
| Social emphasis | Medium | Medium |
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