Mary Richardson was elated when her 2SLGBTQIA+-focused dating app, Bindr, won a prize at Montréal’s Startupfest in 2024. The connections she made were a bonus: she met Vancouver-based Bradley Breton, who became an investor in Bindr. She returned to Pennsylvania with cash winnings and a new Canadian network.
Richardson has had a busy year since. Alongside Breton and her Bindr co-founder, she spun out a marketing software tool to found ColdStart, another United States (US) company, which she says has generated over $1 million in revenue so far.
But under the current US administration, Richardson says growing anti-2SLGBTQIA+ sentiment and a wider retreat from diversity and inclusion initiatives have thrown a wrench into her success. Now, she’s considering a move up north, where she says the climate is more inclusive and more economically viable. And she’s not alone.
“We’ve had people laugh in my face at conferences. Investors put their hands up and turn away as soon as they see that there’s anything queer.”
Mary Richardson
As the US administration targets all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and large corporations follow suit, some queer American tech founders say they’re weighing a move to Canada to ensure the success of their businesses—and their ability to live openly.
When US President Donald Trump regained office in January, he swiftly moved to erase mentions of DEI from all aspects of the federal government via executive order, calling them “radical and wasteful.” This included all “equity-related” grants or contracts.
Though a broader wave of corporate pushback against DEI initiatives had already begun, the executive order spurred a flurry of rollbacks, including in tech. Top companies such as Meta, Amazon, Google, and Accenture ended programs that promoted equitable hiring practices.
In an interview with BetaKit, Richardson said these political changes have “directly impacted” how her companies are doing business, making the US a worse place for her and her founders to build a company.
“We’ve had people laugh in my face at conferences. Investors put their hands up and turn away as soon as they see that there’s anything queer,” she said.
Other ColdStart customers have reached out to Richardson to work with them, she said, but only if she and her co-founders remove “everything Bindr-related” from their pages. Meanwhile, the company has had to note in contracts with fellow queer-led businesses—to whom it offers discounts—that if the client company is “made illegal or disbanded” by the US government for being 2SLGBTQIA+-related, then they can void the contract with no repercussions.
The loss of business opportunities, coupled with the political climate, has pushed Richardson to consider moving the ColdStart executive team to Vancouver.
“Canada is where we found the most acceptance for us as founders, as people,” Richardson said.
It’s just not about acceptance, Breton added. Founders and tech workers shouldn’t be afraid to share and celebrate who they are in a business context.
“The visibility component is really important,” Breton said. “That’s what makes people comfortable in the tech space and the founder space…to [live] their truth.”
As Breton’s co-founder Richardson explores a move to Canada, the uncertainty continues for their company. Much of what fuels her anxiety is “fear of policies and fear of what may happen” with the unpredictable nature of the US administration, she said.
Since Richardson spoke with BetaKit, concerns about the future of 2SLGBTQIA+ rights in the US have only risen. The US Supreme Court has been asked to take up a case this fall that could overturn its 2015 landmark decision that currently protects same-sex marriage.
“There’s a world where I might have to go back in the closet if I stay in the US,” Richardson sai