Out in Tech

Out in Tech is the largest non-profit community of LGBTQ+ tech leaders in the world. Founded in 2013, our mission has been to create opportunities for our members to advance their careers, grow their networks, and leverage tech for social change.

Furthermore, we envision a tech industry where LGBTQ+ people are empowered, well represented, and have full agency, from intern to CEO. Our community is an intersectional group of various races, ethnicities, immigration statuses, abilities, and socio-economic backgrounds. Regrettably, we also share a common identity shaped by marginalization and discrimination, which feels particularly acute today.  

Our shared experience brings strength, resilience, pride, and queer and trans joy. It also often brings mental health challenges. According to a national study, more than 50% of trans and non-binary youth seriously considered suicide last year.

Many of us carry this struggle from adolescence and throughout our careers, even in ostensibly inclusive industries like tech, when we can’t help but wonder if homophobia or transphobia informs how others perceive our contributions. We are one-fifth of the incoming workforce, and yet we still live and work in places where elected officials are trying to silence us, to erase us, and tech leaders can mitigate or enable this in their choices, large and small. 

We believe that greater representation of LGBTQ people in tech will lead to equity and belonging for all underestimated groups — centering women and Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) — because we are all of those identities. Your support helps us galvanize, inspire, and train tech leaders to be more intentional about this, too.