Kentucky Black Trailblazers

What Kentucky Black Trailblazers does

Kentucky Black Trailblazers is a private non-profit organization that operates an augmented reality (AR) experience showcasing the stories of 19 influential Black Kentuckians at physical historic sites across six Kentucky counties: Bardstown/Nelson, Elizabethtown/Hardin, Louisville, Shepherdsville/Bullitt, Shelby, and Oldham. Visitors access the experience by scanning QR codes with their cell phones at each location, which launches AR scenes that superimpose digital images, videos, and animations of historical figures onto the real-world environment. The featured narratives span civil rights leaders, athletes, educators, abolitionists, and military figures, including Muhammad Ali, Oliver Lewis, Henry Bibb, Whitney M. Young Jr., and members of the Harlem Hellfighters.

The core product is a single, unified AR experience with no companion mobile application, no API surface, and no disclosed backend integrations. Technology scope is limited to standard AR rendering and QR-code activation. The experience is offered free to visitors; no ticket pricing, subscription model, or direct revenue mechanism is disclosed. Distribution is entirely physical-location-based, delivered through partnerships with established cultural institutions (Muhammad Ali Center, Kentucky Derby Museum, Kentucky Center for African American Heritage, Oldham County History Center, Bullitt County Historical Society, Patton Museum Foundation) and referral traffic from Kentucky Tourism and six county tourism bureaus. The experience is also designated on the US Civil Rights Trail and the National Park Service Underground Railroad Network to Freedom.

The organization's monetization, if any, appears to be indirect — sourced from tourism partnerships, cultural sponsorships, and grants rather than visitor fees. There is no disclosed headcount, no funding rounds, no ownership structure, no management team data, and no financial reporting. Operating geography is restricted to the state of Kentucky, with no global footprint claimed. The entity has no disclosed patents, trademarks, awards, or regulatory actions.

Name

Kentucky Black Trailblazers

Legal name

Kentucky Black Trailblazers

Website

https://kentuckyblacktrailblazers.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Kentucky Black Trailblazers is a non-profit that delivers a free augmented reality experience at 19 historic sites across six Kentucky counties, sharing stories of influential Black Kentuckians through QR-code-activated AR scenes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Augmented Reality Cultural Heritage Tourism

NAICS

Historical Sites (71212)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Archaeological Sites & Heritage Interpretation Centers (THAJADAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Virtual Field Trips & Experiential Learning Environments (Museums, Geography, History) (EDAFAJAG)

Keywords

• Augmented reality tourism
• Cultural heritage education
• Historical storytelling platform
• Interactive museum experiences
• Qr code experiences

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Tourism Experience Revenue: Revenue appears to be generated through tourism and cultural heritage experiences at multiple Kentucky locations. The experience is free to visitors, suggesting funding may come from tourism partnerships, grants, and cultural sponsorship arrangements with local and state tourism organizations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Kentucky Black Trailblazers is a non-profit organization that uses augmented reality (AR) technology to share the stories of Black historical figures connected to specific places across Kentucky. The experience features 19 unique stories told through AR scenes at locations in 6 Kentucky counties, accessed by visitors who scan QR codes with their cell phones at each historic site, with no app download required.

Product overview

Kentucky Black Trailblazers is a single unified product—an immersive augmented reality experience—that showcases 19 stories of influential Black Kentuckians at locations across six Kentucky counties. The experience uses cutting-edge AR technology where visitors scan QR codes with their cell phones to launch augmented reality scenes that superimpose images, videos, and animations onto the real world, creating interactive historical narratives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Kentucky Black Trailblazers Augmented Reality Experience

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Kentucky TourismcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial tourism partner providing marketing support and visibility for the Kentucky Black Trailblazers experience on the state's tourism website and promotional materials.
• Bardstown/Nelson County TourismcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal tourism bureau promoting the Bardstown experiences including Daniel Arthur Rudd and Mack Rowan historic sites.
• Bullitt County Historical SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost venue for Bullitt County experiences (Annie Reed, Mattie Owens, Rev. C.H. Parrish) located at their facility in Shepherdsville.
• Kentucky Center for African American HeritagecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartner location for Mary Cunningham Smith and Lyman T. Johnson stories at their Louisville facility on Muhammad Ali Blvd.
• Kentucky Derby MuseumcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartner location for Oliver Lewis experience (first Kentucky Derby winner) at 704 Central Avenue, Louisville.
• Muhammad Ali CentercoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartner location for Muhammad Ali experience at 144 N. 6th Street, Louisville. Also a stop on the US Civil Rights Trail.
• Oldham County History CentercoreGTM or Marketing PartnerHost venue for Alex Beaumont experience at their LaGrange campus. Also holds Underground Railroad Network to Freedom designations.
• Patton Museum FoundationminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHost location for Margaret 'Ma' Collier experience at Fort Knox.
• National Park Service Underground Railroad Network to FreedomcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGatewood Plantation (Henry Bibb's birthplace) is designated part of the National Park Service Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. Oldham County History holds Site and Archives designations.
• US Civil Rights TrailcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMuhammad Ali Center experience is designated as a stop on the US Civil Rights Trail.
• Elizabethtown TourismminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal tourism bureau for Elizabethtown/Hardin County experiences including First Black Baptist Church, General Braddock, and Margaret 'Ma' Collier sites.
• Louisville TourismcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial tourism partner promoting Louisville Black heritage experiences including Muhammad Ali, Oliver Lewis, Mary Cunningham Smith, and Lyman T. Johnson.
• Shelby County TourismminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal tourism bureau for Shelby County experiences including Elijah P. Marrs, Harlem Hellfighters, and Whitney M. Young Jr.
• Oldham County TourismminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal tourism bureau promoting Oldham County's 'Bourbon, Horses, Trains & Underground Railroad history' experiences.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Clio: Mobile platform offering location-based historical tours and heritage interpretation at physical sites across the U.S. Direct peer in the AR/location-based heritage tour category, though Clio is a broader general-history platform rather than an African American history specialist.
• StoryCorps: Non-profit oral-history project recording and preserving personal stories from diverse Americans, with significant African American content. Comparable as a heritage storytelling non-profit, though StoryCorps relies on audio interviews rather than AR/visual experiences.
• The HistoryMakers: Non-profit archival organization dedicated to preserving African American oral histories and biographical content. Direct peer given shared mission of curating Black historical narratives for public education, though The HistoryMakers is video/interview-based rather than AR-based.
• Muhammad Ali Center: Louisville-based cultural heritage institution honoring Muhammad Ali and broader civil rights narratives. Direct peer and host partner; comparable as a fixed-site African American heritage attraction, though operating as a traditional museum rather than an AR experience.
• Kentucky Derby Museum: Louisville-based heritage museum dedicated to the Kentucky Derby and its history. Host partner for Kentucky Black Trailblazers' Oliver Lewis experience; comparable as a Louisville-based cultural-heritage tourism attraction.

Broad incumbents

• National Trust for Historic Preservation: National non-profit focused on preserving historic sites and advocating for heritage tourism. Comparable as a non-profit steward of historic American sites and a likely counterpart for partnership, funding, and content collaboration.
• Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture: The U.S. national museum dedicated to African American history, life, and culture. Comparable as a destination cultural-heritage institution with curatorial authority on Black history, and as a competitor for grant funding, tourism traffic, and educator partnerships.
• Google Arts & Culture: Google-operated digital platform delivering immersive AR/VR cultural and historical content at global museum and heritage sites. Comparable to Kentucky Black Trailblazers as a broad incumbent delivering AR-mediated heritage interpretation, though at vastly larger scale and without a single-state focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kentucky Black Trailblazers