The Hg Foundation, which is focused on widening access to tech opportunities in an AI-driven future, today announced a pilot partnership totalling up to $200,000 with Tech Collaborative, to widen access to tech careers in West Michigan. 

Tech Collaborative is Grand Rapids-based non-profit that supports young people from underrepresented backgrounds to learn web design by hiring them to do real client work for local non-profits at a fraction of commercial rates. The programme sees interns complete a 15-week, 300-hour internship, with their time split across technical training, client work, and a structured essential skills programme.  

This structure means interns gain practical work experience and the opportunity to build a portfolio, which are of growing importance in a rapidly changing job market, while non-profits get web services at below-market rates and dedicate more funding to their core mission.  

To date, 12 interns have been trained, 36 non-profit websites developed, and more than $750,000 freed up for non-profit missions. 

Tech Collaborative’s founder, Mike Carnevale, runs the CARNEVALE software design agency and had been offering this kind of support informally for years. Carnevale and Executive Director, Lydia Kauffman, set up Tech Collaborative in 2024 to develop this work into a structured, scalable programme.  

Lydia Kauffman, Executive Director at Tech Collaborative, said: 

“Tech Collaborative exists to build real, lasting pathways into tech for young people who don't fit the traditional pipeline. The Hg Foundation's mission aligns with that vision in a way that made this partnership feel obvious from the start, but what's meant even more is how they've shown up for us over the past year, well before this announcement. Their guidance helped us get to answers in months that would have otherwise taken years of trial and error to figure out on our own. Our agency mindset paired with their philanthropic expertise is a powerhouse combination, and together we're creating real opportunity for the young people we both exist to serve.” 

The Hg Foundation’s $100,000 grant over the next 15 months matches CARNEVALE’s annual investment, and will enable a move into a dedicated site and larger intakes of interns. The Foundation will also match up to a further $100,000 of external funding that Tech Collaborative secures for 2027.  

Funding will also support workshops with local youth organisations to build the pipeline of applicants. Alongside the grant, the Foundation will support the Tech Collaborative team to develop their model and outcomes tracking, so they can measure the programme’s long-term impact on skills and employment. 

Quan Mac, Trustee of The Hg Foundation, said:  

“Tech Collaborative’s double benefit is simple to understand, yet so creative and powerful. Individuals from non-traditional backgrounds have the opportunity to develop valuable technical skills and gain meaningful, real-world professional experience. At the same time, nonprofits gain access to high-quality technology services at a lower cost, allowing them to direct more of their resources toward their missions.  

The Hg Foundation is pleased to support the continued buildout of this initiative, which is already making a significant impact across the West Michigan community.” 

About Tech Collaborative: 

Tech Collaborative's vision is a tech industry that draws talent from every background, not just the traditional pipeline. Based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and formalized as a 501(c)(3) in January 2024, the organization pairs a paid internship in web design and development with real client work, building subsidized websites for non-profits while interns gain professional experience, mentorship, and the essential skills that matter most in an AI-driven economy. The model works because demand runs in both directions: non-profits need affordable, professional web services, and young people from under-resourced backgrounds and non-traditional entry points into tech need a genuine way in. Tech Collaborative grew out of more than a decade of work through its founding creative agency, CARNEVALE, and is built on treating equity and belonging as operating principles, not talking points.  

Find out more at tech-collaborative.org.