By: Trinity Kinslow, written for Multimedia Storytelling
Kayla Austin,19, is a sophomore television and film major from Chicago. She may seem like your average student, but she works to create change after class.
She is a photographer for the men’s basketball team, a member of the Howard University Elite Models, and a gun safety advocate.
In 2016, she started an organization known as My Gun’s Been Moved (MGBM), a gun safety and protection tech startup.
Austin began her gun safety advocacy in seventh grade as a part of a youth program called Junior ACT-SO, an NAACP youth enrichment program.
Throughout middle school, and participation in the program, Austin began researching gun violence against youth. Being from Chicago, she recalled always hearing about gun violence on the news, “but no one was really talking about how it impacts kids directly.”
“Through doing that research I thought I was going to hear about mass shootings and primarily gang violence. But, a huge portion of shootings involving children and teens stem from children having access to their parent’s gun in the home.”
“Now I’m like okay, I can say I came up with an idea and it works,” as she described her excitement about the prototype. “I had this idea, but I didn’t know to turn it into a business model.”
Her patent-pending technology is a 24/7 gun monitor, which notifies owners when their weapon is moved.
She recently won $25,000 from Pharrell’s Black Ambition pitch competition, which will provide necessary funding for her organization. “The goal is to help strengthen the pipeline of talented entrepreneurs and closed the opportunity and wealth gap derived from limited access to capital and resources, according to Pharrell Williams.
“My initial thought process was oh we have to find my iPhone, why don’t we have something like ‘Find my Gun’ or something like that”, Austin recalled. “And everybody was like ‘that’s not a bad idea.’ So I looked it up and nothing like that existed.”
The design process changed over the years, but she finally settled on a smart pad with a built-in alarm. The alarm first sounds off to scare the child, while simultaneously alerting the parent through the MGBM app. Through the app, parents can then contact the police or the emergency contact, if they aren’t nearby.
“It’s really like a middle way for parents to still have access to their weapons. They don’t have to lock it up,” said Austin. “We’re also trying to find a way to make it compatible with safes so that people have an extra layer of protection.”
Shortly after the prototype had been made, Austin began her freshman year at Howard University. She took a class in the School of Business called Marketing for Startups, in which she was the only freshman in attendance. The class, taught by Professor Johnny Graham, helped students form business plans by identifying their audiences, marketing strategies, and branding.
“Him and being in that class helped me a lot,” Austin said. “I actually used all my assignments from that class to apply to Black Ambition.”
Since receiving the award from Black Ambition, doors have opened for Kayla to expand and network. She was highlighted in Teen Vogue’s 21 Under 21: the Revolutionary Youth You Need To Know and in Black Enterprise. She also had the opportunity to attend business workshops, hosted by Chanel in New York City, earlier this month.
However, her most exciting experience, so far, was the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the largest tech conference in the world.
“We had a lot of government agencies and manufacturers… stopping at the booth and asking questions, wanting to be involved.”
“Being there helped us a lot with networking…Going there helped me see that there are people in the industry that have roles that are meant to help speed up my process. So that was a really, really cool experience.”
As time goes on, Austin continues to find a balance between school and work.
“I think within the past two weeks I’ve been figuring out somewhat of a balance for myself. So, on Sundays, I try to carve out time for when I’m going to do my homework and when I’m just going to enjoy myself or go to Towers and do something [with my friends].
Austin’s workload includes Intro to Media Production, Digital Media Literacy, and finding new ways to advocate for gun safety.
She’s had to learn how to better utilize her time and prioritize her to-do lists. Though being an entrepreneur is never predictable, Austin has found a way to manage her busy schedule.
“I used to be someone who would sleep till 11 or 12ish and I’ve been realizing, I can’t do that anymore,” she laughed. “In the mornings I have class…go to class, have meetings on like, marketing, get updates on the product development side, um draft social media posts… sometimes I need to apply to accelerators or grants and that’ll take up part of my day. Every day looks different.”
When asked what the public can expect from the rising tech entrepreneur, Austin provided a gleaming list of the next steps.
She is excited to soon combine her television and film major, and gun safety advocacy, to create a series of interviews. She wants to create shows with gun violence survivors and other safety advocates. Specifically, she wants to educate more people about the proper ways to store guns, and bring awareness to gun-related accidents.
“What we’re trying to do is use media to really start that conversation.”
“You can also expect to see us looking for funding,” Austin laughed. “So, if anyone who knows anyone who is looking to invest in a Black business in tech, absolutely.”
Though Black Ambition has been pivotal to her business, Austin is still searching for more funding to support My Gun’s Been Moved. She has a GoFundMe page, so supporters of her vision can donate while she continues to apply for more grants.
“I still need $75,000 more capital to successfully manufacture, complete the software application, and launch my product. Your collective dollars can help me alleviate gun violence,” she said on GoFundMe.
You can learn more about My Guns Been Moved, and Austin’s advocacy work, here.