Share the code
Generosity is the strategy. The fastest path to generational wealth is making sure everything one of us knows, all of us know.
About Johnnie
From Detroit, for Detroit.
An entrepreneur, ecosystem builder, and economic-mobility advocate who believes technology should belong to everyone — and who is building the rooms, mentorship, and pipelines to prove it.
The story
A belief that tech should belong to everyone
Where it started
Before Black Tech Saturdays, before the tech world knew his name, Johnnie Turnage was learning the oldest lesson in organizing: nobody wins alone. He trained through the Gamaliel National Network and cut his teeth on multi-state ballot campaigns, Michigan's gubernatorial races, and the fight for cannabis legalization — work that taught him how to build coalitions before he ever built a company.
The bridge to tech
That organizing instinct found a new home in civic tech. Between 2020 and 2024, Johnnie built EvenScore, a venture aimed at putting civic power into people's hands. It was the proving ground — the place where he learned that the same principles that move a ballot initiative can move an economy, if you build the right room for it.
Black Tech Saturdays
On April 29, 2023, Johnnie and his wife Alexa turned that belief into an organization. He leads the ecosystem-building; she leads the story. What started with five people on Michigan Central's campus in Detroit is now a national community — thousands of founders supported, $3M+ raised for programs, 1,000+ free workshops hosted coast to coast. The mission hasn't changed since day one: help a thousand people win.
Where he shows up now
Johnnie co-chairs the Innovation and Emerging Industries Committee on Mayor Mary Sheffield's transition team, alongside Dug Song and Lisa Lunsford — carrying the same belief into City Hall that built BTS from a room of five: that access shouldn't be an accident. He's been named a Crain's Detroit Business Newsmaker and 40 Under 40 honoree, taken the stage at SXSW, and sat across the table from senior federal and state officials making the case for Detroit's founders. But ask him what he's proudest of, and he'll point back to the room — the Saturdays, the thousand people, the work that's still in front of him.
What Johnnie believes
Four ideas that guide the work
The operating principles behind Black Tech Saturdays — and behind everything he builds.
Plant seeds early
We all bring gifts to the garden. Invest in youth and in each other, and the next generation gets much further than we did.
Grit over resources
If you can do it with a little, imagine what happens with a lot. Detroit's constraint has always been its edge.
See it to believe it
Representation removes barriers. When people see themselves in tech, they go on to do amazing things.
The journey
From a room of five to a movement
A short timeline of Black Tech Saturdays — and the mission that hasn't changed.
2023
Founded Black Tech Saturdays
Launched with co-founder Alexa Turnage and a team of five on Michigan Central's campus in Detroit — a weekly room for founders, mentors, and industry leaders.
2024
From a room to a movement
Grew into a community supporting founders from idea to IPO — with workshops, trainings, and pitch competitions putting real capital in founders' hands.
2025
National reach & recognition
Recipient of the Detroit Regional Chamber and General Motors NeighborHub Grant, a Detroit Policy Conference speaker, and host of a 1,000-student Digital Empowerment Summit at the Michigan Science Center.
Today
Building the next great tech hub
$3M+ raised for programs and 1,000+ workshops later, the mission is unchanged: access, opportunity, and community wealth — a thousand people winning.
“We all bring gifts to the garden. A garden keeps growing, so we plant seeds that let people grow.”Johnnie Turnage
Let's build something that lasts.
Whether you're planning an event, exploring a partnership, looking for a speaker, or just want to talk about building an inclusive tech economy — Johnnie would love to hear from you.