(OAKLAND, Calif. – July 8, 2026) — Innovation doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because people are willing to step into difficult spaces, solve problems, and build something better.
That’s why I’m excited to welcome Carlton Williams as this week’s guest on The Black Business Roundtable.
Hosted by yours truly, Art “Doug” Blacksher, The Black Business Roundtable streams live every Thursday at 7:00 p.m. Eastern / 4:00 p.m. Pacific on the Doni Glover YouTube Channel. Produced by BMORENews and presented by BlackUSA.News, the program spotlights entrepreneurs, innovators, business leaders, and changemakers from across the nation.
Carlton’s journey is one of leadership, discipline, and reinvention.
He began his career with the United States Forest Service, serving as a Wildland Firefighter and Forestry Technician from 2005 to 2009. Working with elite crews including the Modoc Hotshots and Chester Helitack, he participated in wildfire suppression, search-and-rescue missions, helicopter operations, and emergency response under the Incident Command System (ICS).
From there, Carlton entered entrepreneurship, founding New Life CA Cannabis Co. and spending the next decade building it into a fully vertically integrated company. Along the way, he raised more than $500,000 in capital, developed regulatory compliance systems, built scalable business operations, and grew the organization to a team of 17 employees.
Committed to creating opportunities for others, Carlton also launched the Green Huddle outreach initiative, helping equity applicants successfully navigate Oakland’s Measure Z cannabis program and opening doors for entrepreneurs seeking to enter the industry.
Today, Carlton is helping shape the future through cybersecurity and artificial intelligence.
As a Cybersecurity & AI Intern at Shoe Box Financial, he leads AI automation initiatives, strengthens cloud security controls, and recently architected a scalable AI-powered Digital Advocacy Platform on Amazon Web Services (AWS) for a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
His commitment to community remains just as strong. Carlton serves on the San Francisco District Attorney’s Community Advisory Board and mentors at-risk youth, combining technical expertise with a passion for public service and community empowerment.
During our conversation, we’ll discuss entrepreneurship, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, leadership, innovation, and how emerging technologies are creating new opportunities for Black businesses and communities.
If you’re interested in where technology is headed—and how Black entrepreneurs can help shape that future—you won’t want to miss this conversation.
Watch LIVE
The Black Business Roundtable
Hosted by Art “Doug” Blacksher
Special Guest: Carlton Williams
Thursday
7:00 p.m. Eastern / 4:00 p.m. Pacific
Watch on YouTube:
https://youtube.com/doniglover
Also streaming on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/BlackUSANews/
Produced by BMORENews
Presented by BlackUSA.News
