By Leon Stafford,

Atlanta tech entrepreneur Jewel Burks Solomon has been tapped as the first head of the new Google for Startups in the United States, a position that will be based in Atlanta. 

Solomon will be responsible for driving the organization’s engagement with existing Google for Startups partners across the nation, the company said in a release. 

Google for Startups seeks to connect startups with the company’s products, connection and best practices.

“I am thrilled about the opportunity to do work I’m deeply passionate about and to help level the playing field in the startup ecosystem,” Solomon said. “Great ideas and startups can come from anywhere and anyone — you don’t have to be based in Silicon Valley to be successful in this industry. 

“In this position, I have a great opportunity to highlight the work of incredible startups in Atlanta and other markets that have historically been under-resourced,” she said.

In 2013, Solomon co-founded Partpic, a technology business whose product allowed users to identify unknown parts for maintenance by taking a picture of them and then matching their use. Amazon bought the company in 2016. 

“Jewel’s background as an entrepreneur and investor gives her a deep amount of empathy for the founder journey and insight into what founders need to build successful businesses,” Agnieszka Hryniewicz-Bieniek, global director of Google for Startups, said. “Her experience allows the team to ensure our work is meaningful to startups and that the metrics of success are closely aligned with the startups we work with.”

Original article was published here.