Changing into a enterprise capitalist has change into the most recent standing image in Hollywood.
Everybody as of late, from Olivia Wilde to Emma Watson, is both launching a enterprise agency or is within the means of backing the following hottest firm. Robinhood, Uber, and Klarna all have some glitzy names on their cap tables, paving the best way for the rise of “Hollywood angels.”
For founders, having celebs on the cap desk can deliver plenty of buzz to the startup — and bonus factors if the celeb is aware of what they’re doing, too. Listed below are a number of the high celebs investing and what they sometimes look to spend money on. (This record will likely be up to date periodically).
Snoop Dogg
The well-known rapper and persona is a prolific angel investor and can be a founding father of Casa Verde Capital, a agency targeted on hashish investments. As an angel investor, in response to PitchBook, he’s backed firms corresponding to Cameo, Reddit, Klarna, Robinhood, and the fintech MoonPay, alongside different celebs on this record. He’s made no less than 26 investments, in response to PitchBook. The managing companion of Casa Verde Capital is Karan Wadhera and the agency closed a $94 million Fund II in 2020.
Sara and Erin Foster
The Foster sisters are two of Hollywood’s most well-known siblings, greatest identified as of late because the producers of the Kristen Bell Netflix present “No person Needs This.” They launched a enterprise agency in 2022 trying to elevate $20 million to again shopper firms, and the fund has formally closed, their reps confirmed to us. They know the patron space effectively: They have already got a podcast, a clothes line, and successful tv present.
PitchBook exhibits the agency, which they run alongside enterprise companion Phil Schwarz, has written no less than six checks, together with into firms just like the diaper model Kudos (alongside Gwyneth Paltrow) and the luxurious boxed wine firm Juliet.
As angel buyers, the sisters have additionally invested within the alkaline water firm ZenWTR. Sara can be an angel investor within the swimwear firm Summersalt and the ear-piercing startup Rowan.
Kevin Hart
Just a few years in the past, comic Kevin Hart launched a enterprise agency, HartBeat Ventures, alongside Robert Roman, an investor with a background in monetary administration for leisure and sports activities celebrities.
The agency was based round 2021 with the mission to assist minority and underrepresented founders. It obtained its first outdoors funding from J.P. Morgan as a part of one of many financial institution’s initiatives to fund extra companies led by ladies and other people of shade.
The agency has invested in no less than 14 firms, in response to PitchBook, together with the artwork market Masterworks, the 3D printing firm Prepared Participant Me, and Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty lingerie line. Tashi Nakanishi and Walid Samaha are companions on the agency, in response to LinkedIn, whereas Ron Everline serves as vice chairman.
HartBeat Ventures started elevating its Fund I in 2022 with no goal quantity. As of January 2024, it has raised no less than $28 million, in response to an SEC submitting from January. An October SEC submitting additionally exhibits that HartBeat is making an attempt to lift capital for what appears to be an SPV trying to spend money on Aston Martin’s Method One automotive racing workforce.
Paris Hilton
The famed socialite can be an angel investor, in response to PitchBook. She has made investments via her firm 11:11 Media, of which she is the CEO and co-founder. Her investments have included the crypto firm MoonPay, the biotech firm Colossal Biosciences, the group occasion platform AfterParty, and the podcast platform Fireplace Chats.
The theme for her appears to be social platforms, biotechnology, and SaaS merchandise that make shopper life simpler. She’s made no less than 22 investments, in response to PitchBook, and occurs to be married to Carter Reum, founding father of well-known Los Angeles agency M13 Ventures, which has invested in firms corresponding to ClassPass, Canvas, and Pinterest, in response to its web site.
Ashton Kutcher
Maybe one of the famed and notable celeb VCs is Ashton Kutcher. He’s the co-founder of two VC companies, A-Grade and Sound Ventures, each of which he began with Man Oseary. Shortly after launching Sound, Effie Epstein joined as managing companion.
Sound Ventures, based in 2015, seems to be to again software program firms and has greater than $1 billion in belongings below administration, in response to PitchBook. It additionally invests out of thematic funds, and final 12 months launched an AI Development Thematic fund, which invested in firms corresponding to Hugging Face, OpenAI, Anthropic, and World Labs. He instructed the viewers at TechCrunch’s 2024 Disrupt that he’s backing rivals in AI as a result of he thinks there’s room for a number of large AI mannequin firms. His different notable investments between A-Grade and Sound embody Affirm, Airbnb, Airtable, Duolingo, and Uber.
Nas
The famed rapper Nas based his agency QueensBridge Enterprise Companions again in 2014. It’s made greater than 130 investments throughout numerous industries and has round $140 million in belongings below administration, in response to PitchBook. Anand Murthy is a companion on the agency. The agency has invested in firms corresponding to the bags model Away (alongside Jay-Z) and the bedding firm Parachute, in response to PitchBook.
As an angel investor, Nas has made greater than 50 investments, in response to PitchBook. He’s backed SeatGeek, Robinhood, Ring, Coinbase, and the fintech Mercury.
Gwyneth Paltrow
The Goop founder has made no less than 24 investments as an angel investor, in response to PitchBook. She, alongside Moj Mahdara, can be the co-founder of Kinship Ventures, which invests in shopper and wellness firms. The agency was trying to elevate a $75 million VC fund, Axios reported final 12 months, and has backed the crypto fee firm MoonPay. In line with different SEC filings, it appears Kinship Ventures additionally raised what appears to be an SPV to again OpenAI and the bitcoin mining firm TeraWulf.
As an angel investor, Paltrow has invested within the diaper firm Kudos, the hair firm Crown Affair, the wonder e-commerce market 13 Lune, and the beverage model Olipop, alongside actress Priyanka Chopra, in response to PitchBook. Actress Mindy Kaling, rapper Logic, and the Jonas Brothers, additionally backed Olipop.
Emma Watson
The actress has lower no less than two angel investor checks, in response to PitchBook. Investments embody no less than two firms, together with the biomanufacturing firm FabricNano, and Hertility Well being. Watson is a well-regarded activist, particularly in relation to the atmosphere and girls’s rights. It’s no surprise, then, that her two angel investments are in firms that search to make product manufacturing extra sustainable and a ladies’s well being platform.
Olivia Wilde
Actress and director Olivia Wilde teamed up with Neil Sirni, who led Roc Nation’s enterprise division Arrive, to launch the enterprise agency Proximity, Bloomberg reported in October. Wilde doesn’t have a PitchBook profile simply but however Bloomberg experiences that her new agency will concentrate on shopper and enterprise expertise and has already lower a couple of checks, together with into Pendulum Therapeutics.
Investor Jason Mack and artist Santigold, identified for her tune “L.E.S. Artistes,” are additionally companions on the agency, in response to Bloomberg. SEC filings present that Proximity is elevating two new SPV funds, together with a $5 million well being fund and one other $10 million fund.
Jay-Z
The music mogul is an angel investor and co-founder of RocNation and of what’s now MarcyPen Capital Companions, an funding agency stemming from the merger of Jay-Z’s Marcy Enterprise Companions with Pendulum Holding’s funding arm Pendulum Alternatives.
Roc Nation has a enterprise arm referred to as Arrive Alternatives Administration, which was as soon as managed by Neil Sirni, the investor now working with Olivia Wilde at Proximity. That enterprise arm has made no less than 40 investments, in response to PitchBook, backing firms corresponding to Sweetgreen and Epic Video games.
Earlier than the merger, Marcy Enterprise Companions invested in a number of firms, corresponding to Rihanna’s Fenty x Savage (making Rihanna one of many few Black ladies on the planet to have a unicorn firm) and the web3 firm Spatial Labs. Charlie Hanna and Mason O’Hanlon are listed as buyers at MarcyPen Capital Companions on PitchBook and LinkedIn.
Moreover, as an angel investor, Jay-Z has made some notable investments — no less than 27, in response to PitchBook — into firms like Oatly, Flowhub, Unimaginable Meals, and the bags firm Away.