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Becoming a venture capitalist has become the latest status symbol in Hollywood.
Everyone these days, from Olivia Wilde to Emma Watson, is either launching a venture firm or is in the process of backing the next hottest company. Robinhood, Uber, and Klarna all have some glitzy names on their cap tables, paving the way for the rise of “Hollywood angels.”
For founders, having celebs on the cap table can bring a lot of buzz to the startup — and bonus points if the celeb knows what they are doing, too. Here are some of the top celebs investing and what they typically look to invest in. (This list will be updated periodically).
Snoop Dogg
The famous rapper and personality is a prolific angel investor and is also a founder of Casa Verde Capital, a firm focused on cannabis investments. As an angel investor, according to PitchBook, he’s backed companies such as Cameo, Reddit, Klarna, Robinhood, and the fintech MoonPay, alongside other celebs on this list. He’s made at least 26 investments, according to PitchBook. The managing partner of Casa Verde Capital is Karan Wadhera and the firm closed a $94 million Fund II in 2020.
Sara and Erin Foster
The Foster sisters are two of Hollywood’s most famous siblings, best known these days as the producers of the Kristen Bell Netflix show “Nobody Wants This.” They launched a venture firm in 2022 looking to raise $20 million to back consumer companies, and the fund has officially closed, their reps confirmed to us. They know the consumer area well: They already have a podcast, a clothing line, and a hit television show.
PitchBook shows the firm, which they run alongside business partner Phil Schwarz, has written at least six checks, including into companies like the diaper brand Kudos (alongside Gwyneth Paltrow) and the luxury boxed wine company Juliet.
As angel investors, the sisters have also invested in the alkaline water company ZenWTR. Sara is also an angel investor in the swimwear company Summersalt and the ear-piercing startup Rowan.
(From left) Erin Foster and Sara Foster, Co-Founders of Favorite Daughter, and business partner Phil Schwarz.Image Credits:Kimberly White / Stringer / Getty Images
Kevin Hart
A few years ago, comedian Kevin Hart launched a venture firm, HartBeat Ventures, alongside Robert Roman, an investor with a background in financial management for entertainment and sports celebrities.
The firm was founded around 2021 with the mission to support minority and underrepresented founders. It received its first outside investment from J.P. Morgan as part of one of the bank’s initiatives to fund more firms led by women and people of color.
The firm has invested in at least 14 companies, according to PitchBook, including the art marketplace Masterworks, the 3D printing company Ready Player Me, and Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty lingerie line. Tashi Nakanishi and Walid Samaha are partners at the firm, according to LinkedIn, while Ron Everline serves as vice president.
HartBeat Ventures began raising its Fund I in 2022 with no target amount. As of January 2024, it has raised at least $28 million, according to an SEC filing from January. An October SEC filing also shows that HartBeat is trying to raise capital for what seems to be an SPV looking to invest in Aston Martin’s Formula One car racing team.
Paris Hilton
The famed socialite is also an angel investor, according to PitchBook. She has made investments through her company 11:11 Media, of which she is the CEO and co-founder. Her investments have included the crypto company MoonPay, the biotech company Colossal Biosciences, the community event platform AfterParty, and the podcast platform Fireside Chats.
The theme for her seems to be social platforms, biotechnology, and SaaS products that make consumer life easier. She’s made at least 22 investments, according to PitchBook, and happens to be married to Carter Reum, founder of well-known Los Angeles firm M13 Ventures, which has invested in companies such as ClassPass, Canvas, and Pinterest, according to its website.
Ashton Kutcher
Perhaps one of the most famed and notable celebrity VCs is Ashton Kutcher. He is the co-founder of two VC firms, A-Grade and Sound Ventures, both of which he started with Guy Oseary. Shortly after launching Sound, Effie Epstein joined as managing partner.
Sound Ventures, founded in 2015, looks to back software companies and has more than $1 billion in assets under management, according to PitchBook. It also invests out of thematic funds, and last year launched an AI Growth Thematic fund, which invested in companies such as Hugging Face, OpenAI, Anthropic, and World Labs. He told the audience at TechCrunch’s 2024 Disrupt that he’s backing competitors in AI because he thinks there’s room for multiple massive AI model companies. His other notable investments between A-Grade and Sound include Affirm, Airbnb, Airtable, Duolingo, and Uber.
Nas
The famed rapper Nas founded his firm QueensBridge Venture Partners back in 2014. It’s made more than 130 investments across various industries and has around $140 million in assets under management, according to PitchBook. Anand Murthy is a partner at the firm. The firm has invested in companies such as the luggage brand Away (alongside Jay-Z) and the bedding company Parachute, according to PitchBook.
As an angel investor, Nas has made more than 50 investments, according to PitchBook. He’s backed SeatGeek, Robinhood, Ring, Coinbase, and the fintech Mercury.
Nas Performing at Qudos Bank Arena.Image Credits:John Fordham / Contributor / Getty Images
Gwyneth Paltrow
The Goop founder has made at least 24 investments as an angel investor, according to PitchBook. She, alongside Moj Mahdara, is also the co-founder of Kinship Ventures, which invests in consumer and wellness companies. The firm was looking to raise a $75 million VC fund, Axios reported last year, and has backed the crypto payment company MoonPay. According to other SEC filings, it seems Kinship Ventures also raised what seems to be an SPV to back OpenAI and the bitcoin mining company TeraWulf.
As an angel investor, Paltrow has invested in the diaper company Kudos, the hair company Crown Affair, the beauty e-commerce marketplace Thirteen Lune, and the beverage brand Olipop, alongside actress Priyanka Chopra, according to PitchBook. Actress Mindy Kaling, rapper Logic, and the Jonas Brothers, also backed Olipop.
Emma Watson
The actress has cut at least two angel investor checks, according to PitchBook. Investments include at least two companies, including the biomanufacturing company FabricNano, and Hertility Health. Watson is a well-regarded activist, especially when it comes to the environment and women’s rights. It’s no wonder, then, that her two angel investments are in companies that seek to make product manufacturing more sustainable and a women’s health platform.
Olivia Wilde
Actress and director Olivia Wilde teamed up with Neil Sirni, who led Roc Nation’s venture division Arrive, to launch the venture firm Proximity, Bloomberg reported in October. Wilde does not have a PitchBook profile just yet but Bloomberg reports that her new firm will focus on consumer and enterprise technology and has already cut a few checks, including into Pendulum Therapeutics.
Investor Jason Mack and artist Santigold, known for her song “L.E.S. Artistes,” are also partners at the firm, according to Bloomberg. SEC filings show that Proximity is raising two new SPV funds, including a $5 million health fund and another $10 million fund.
Olivia Wilde at the 2023 Baby2Baby Gala.Image Credits:Gilbert Flores / Contributor / Getty Images
Jay-Z
The music mogul is an angel investor and co-founder of RocNation and of what is now MarcyPen Capital Partners, an investment firm stemming from the merger of Jay-Z’s Marcy Venture Partners with Pendulum Holding’s investment arm Pendulum Opportunities.
Roc Nation has a venture arm called Arrive Opportunities Management, which was once managed by Neil Sirni, the investor now working with Olivia Wilde at Proximity. That venture arm has made at least 40 investments, according to PitchBook, backing companies such as Sweetgreen and Epic Games.
Before the merger, Marcy Venture Partners invested in several companies, such as Rihanna’s Fenty x Savage (making Rihanna one of the few Black women in the world to have a unicorn company) and the web3 company Spatial Labs. Charlie Hanna and Mason O’Hanlon are listed as investors at MarcyPen Capital Partners on PitchBook and LinkedIn.
Furthermore, as an angel investor, Jay-Z has made some notable investments — at least 27, according to PitchBook — into companies like Oatly, Flowhub, Impossible Foods, and the luggage company Away.
