You may have seen them on the big screen battling aliens from outer space or first pumping after making the game-winning shot. Although they're paid to give the fans what they want, it hasn't stopped them from investing their money to become venture capitalists.
Many celebrities don't properly plan for their future and ride their money as long as they can. However, these celebrities are changing the game by having a growth mindset about wealth. They understand the difference between making money and building wealth.
Whether they're investing in companies to support a cause, increase their liquid net worth, or build generational wealth, there is no doubt they are raising the bar for other celebrities.
Check out these 35 celebrities who also are venture capitalists. Some may surprise you. Others may inspire you to start investing!
1. Jessica Alba
Industry: Actress
Jessica Alba is known for making moves on the big screen, such as Honey and as the Invisible Woman in Fantastic Four. Although she has taken a break from acting, she hasn’t stayed invisible to the business world. Alba founded The Honest Company, which sells various baby, personal, household products. She has also invested in the company Headspace, which helps people deal with stress and teach them how to meditate.
2. Carmelo Anthony
Industry: Basketball Player
Carmelo Anthony spent most of his NBA career with the Denver Nuggets and the New York Knicks and is now playing for the Portland Trail Blazers. When not isolating his opponents, he founded m7 Tech Partners, which invests in early-stage digital media, consumer internet, and technology opportunities.
3. Tyra Banks
Industry: Model, TV Personality
Tyra Banks is a legendary supermodel that has crossed over into movies and TV, such as starring in Coyote Ugly and hosting America’s Next Top Model. Through her company, Fierce Capital, this runway model invests in The Muse, a career advice website geared toward helping millennials model their future.
4. Charles Barkley
Industry: Retired Basketball Player, NBA Analyst
“Sir Charles” is considered one of the great power-forwards in NBA history. He is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and is a member of the Dream Team. Now, he’s a part of a venture capital fund called Alabama Future Fund that invests in Alabama entrepreneurs’ dreams. Barkley also was a guest on the TV show Shark Tank and invested in a few companies, such as SubSafe and Cave Shake.
5. Justin Bieber
Industry: Music Artist
Justin Bieber began covering songs on YouTube to becoming the youngest music artist to accomplish seven #1 albums in the United States. Bieber invests in several tech companies, most notably Spotify, where he also has the most songs with a billion Spotify streams. Though one of his number-one hits songs is “Sorry,” he is in no way apologetic for his investment.
6. Bono
Industry: Music Artist
Bono (Paul Hewson) has been making hits with U2 for decades and is also well known for his philanthropy. He participated in a private equity firm called Elevation Partner, which invested and acquired media and entertainment companies. However, after another company acquired Elevation Partner, Bobo co-founded The Rise Fund, which aims to help a new generation of entrepreneurs who believe that “they too” can deliver positive and sustainable solutions.
7. George Clooney
Industry: Actor
George Clooney went from popular TV medical drama E.R. to the internationally known movie Ocean's Eleven. In 2013, Clooney co-founded a tequila company called Casamigos and sold it in 2017 for a “steal of a deal” of $1 billion. No heist required!
8. Sean (P. Diddy) Combs
Industry: Rapper, Record Producer
Puffy Daddy has helped many artists rise to fame, such as 112, Faith Evans, and the Notorious BIG. This Bad Boy founder invested his Benjamins in an Artificial Company Forethought, which develops technology that automates customer service.
9. Leonardo Dicaprio
Industry: Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio is known for his roles in Titanic and Inception. DiCaprio dreams big with his investments in the mattress company Casper and Beyond Meat, a company that produces plant-based meat substitutes. He doesn’t look like he’s sinking anytime soon.
10. Robert Downey, Jr.
at the Los Angeles Premiere of ‘The Soloist'. Paramount Theatre, Hollywood, CA. 04-20-09
Industry: Actor
Robert Downey, Jr. has been amazing fans through his rendition of Iron Man in the Marvel Universe. However, off-screen, Downey is more of an ant-man with his investment in an insect farming startup Ÿnsect, aiming to create the world’s largest insect farm. “Ah, snap!”
11. Kevin Durant
Industry: Basketball Player
Kevin Durant is a two-time NBA champion with the Gold State Warriors but had to take a break when he ruptured his Achilles in Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals. However, Durant hasn’t slowed down when investing in companies like Sandbox VR, Imperfect Foods, Thrive Global, Acorns, Postmates, and more!
12. Jeff Foxworthy
Industry: Comedian
Jeff Foxworthy is known for his common comedic phrase, “You Might Be a Redneck If…” However, Foxworthy’s business mindset and success is no joke. Besides his other business venture, he was a guest on Shark Tank, where he invested in Hydromax, a shoulder-mounted hydration system for athletes.
13. Andre Iguodala
Courtesy of Deposit Photos
Industry: Basketball Player
Andre Iguodala is a multi-NBA Champion and was awarded the 2015 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player. Iguodala has found value in technology off the court and made several investments in it, the most notable being Zoom Video Communications. His other investments are Casper, Datadog, Pagerduty, Jumia, and Allbirds.
14. 50 Cent
David Edwards/DailyCeleb.Com 818-249-4998
Industry: Rapper
50 Cent (Curtis Jackson) is known for his songs Candy Shop and In Da Club. 50 Cent, a G-Unit member, also joined the club of investors by investing in Vitamin Water (acquired now by Coca-Cola) and Casper, the mattress and pillow company.
15. Jay-z
at the 16th Annual GQ “Men Of The Year” Celebration
Courtesy of Deposit Photos
Industry: Rapper
Jay-Z (Shawn Carter) is considered one of the great Hip Hop icons of the ‘90s producing hits like 99 Problems, Hard Knock Life, and Empire State of Mind. He founded the venture capital firm Marcy Venture Partners, which has solved problems by investing in Wheels, an electric bike rental company, and Savage X Fenty, a lingerie line by Rihanna.
16. Derek Jeter
Industry: Retired Baseball Player
Derek Jeter won five World Series with the New York Yankees playing the shortstop position. However, after he retired, he didn’t fall short when it came to venture capitalism. Jeter is an active investor who invested in Whistle, a sports broadcaster, and Bespoken Spirits, a spirits drink company.
17. Earvin “Magic” Johnson
Industry: Retired Basketball Player
Magic Johnson won five NBA Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and is considered one of the best point guards of all time. Johnson sprinkled his magic and invested in ShotTracker, a company that uses technology to help coaches and players to collect data and perform analytics.
18. Ashton Kutcher
Industry: Actor
Ashton Kutcher is known for his time on That ‘70s Show and MTV’s Punk’d. However, Kutcher has shown the world that he is a serious investor. Many celebrities highly recognize him for his activeness in venture capitalism, specifically in technology. Kutcher has made investments in numerous companies, such as Bird, Spotify, Airbnb, Robinhood, and more.
19. Jeremy Lin
Courtesy of Deposit Photos
Industry: Basketball Player
Jeremy Lin is mostly known for shocking the NBA with Linsanity, where he came off the bench and scored over 20 points in six straight games. A couple of years later, Lin won an NBA Championship with the Toronto Raptors. In 2018, he “Lin-vested” in NEX Team, a mobile artificial intelligence company.
20. Madonna
at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards
Courtesy of Deposit Photos
Industry: Music Artist
Madonna is an icon for her generation producing songs like Vogue, Borderline, and Like a Virgin. This Material Girl has become more intentional with her money with Vita Coco Coconut Water and Tidal investments, a music streaming service.
21. Tobey Maguire
Industry: Actor
Tobey Macguire swung onto the big screen in the early 2000s with his role of Spider-Man. Macguire has invested in numerous companies, such as Casper, Mobili, and Toot, a company that provides on-demand education over the web.
22. Joe Montanna
Courtesy of Deposit Photos
Industry: Retired Football Player
Joe Montana is an NFL legend with the San Francisco 49ers who won four Super Bowl Championships. “Joe Cool” founded Liquid 2 Ventures and has invested in companies like Whatnot, Autoleap, Secureframe, and more.
23. Demi Moore
Credit: Lumeimages.com
Industry: Actress
Demi Moore has played significant roles in movies, such as Ghost, G.I. Jane, Indecent Proposal, and The Scarlet Letter. Moore is making the grade by investing in Thrive Market and BeautyCon.
24. Nas
Industry: Rapper
Nas (Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones) has made multi-platinum hits, such as If I Ruled the World (Image That) and NY State of Mind. Nas founded the venture capital firm QueensBridge Venture Partners, which looks to rule the world with investments in different companies, such as MarketSpace, Bubble, and Cure Hydration!
25. Steve Nash
Industry: Retired Basketball Player, NBA Coach
Steve Nash is known for his NBA career with the Phoenix Suns, where he led to the Western Conference Finals. Alongside Jeremy Lin, Nash is also an investor of NEX Team, the mobile artificial intelligence company.
26. Shaquille O’Neal
Industry: Retired NBA Player, Sports Analyst
Shaq is considered one of the great big men of the NBA. He has won three NBA Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and one NBA Championship with the Miami Heat. On top of releasing a rap album, starring in movies, and featuring as a sports analyst, the Big Aristotle was an early investor in Apple, Google, the search engine giant, Five guys, Auntie Annes, and more.
27. Alex Rodrigez
Industry: Retired Baseball Player
Alex Rodriguez is a retired baseball player who won a World Series with the New York Yankees, where he finished his career. Mr. 3000 founded an investment firm A-Rod Corp, which invests in Acorns, Bungalow, Snapchat, and more.
28. Aaron Rogers
Industry: Football Player
Aaron Rogers is the starting quarterback for the Green Bay Packers and added another Superbowl championship to the franchise. This cheese head co-founded Rx3 Ventures, which has invested in companies such as Manscaped, Hims, Therabody, Tocaya Organica, and more.
29. Ryan Seacrest
Industry: TV Personality, Radio broadcaster
Ryan Seacrest is most notable for hosting American Idol and radio broadcasting on the American Top 40. Seacrest's Seacrest Global Group pressed play and invested in Headspace, a stress relieving and medication app, and ATTN, a startup media company.
30. Maria Sharapova
Industry: Retired Tennis Player, Model
Maria Sharapova won five Grand Slam titles before retiring in 2020. This Wimbledon champ has served Therabody (formally Theragun) by investing in their high-end massage therapy products.
31. Will Smith
Industry: Rapper, Actor
Will Smith started his career as a rapper and moved into TV as the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Afterward, he starred in blockbuster movies, such as Independence Day and Bad Boys. Smith co-founded the venture capital fund Dreamers VC and has invested in a treasure trove of companies, such as The Boring Company, Sandbox VR, TravelBank, and so much more!
32. Snoop Dogg
Industry: Rapper
Snoop Dogg (Calvin Broadus) released staple songs, such as Gin and Juice and Drop It Like It’s Hot. Snoop co-founded the venture capital fund Casa Verde Capital that is heating up with its investment in the cannabis industry with Leaflink, Green Bits, Mary Jane, and Eaze.
33. Justin Timberlake
Industry: Music Artist
Justin Timberlake started his singing career as a member of the boy band NSYNC and moved into a solo career producing songs like My Love, Cry Me A River, and SexyBack. Timberlake is in no way crying over his investments: Sandbox VR, a virtual reality company, and Aftermaster Audio Labs, an audio technology company. And Stipple, a photo-sharing company.
34. Serena Williams
Industry: Tennis Player
Serena Williams has won 23 Grand Slams, one championship short of tying the world record. Williams founded Serena Ventures that has invested in a grand slam of companies (over 30+), such as MasterClass, Impossible Foods, Propel, Lola, Noom, and so much more!
35. Tiger Woods
Industry: Golfer
Tiger Woods won multiple golf championships across all four major tournaments: Masters, PGA, US Open, and British Open. Woods created Tiger Woods Ventures, which partnered with PopStroke Entertainment Group to produce a technology-infused golfing experience.
Jonathan Sanchez is a real estate investor and personal finance blogger for Parent Portfolio. He owns a small real estate business that operates a couple of investment properties in his local market. He aims to help others understand their money and generate passive income. He’s also been featured in Business Insider, USA Today, and FOX Business.