You might know Ashton Kutcher from TV shows and movies like "That 70's Show", "Punked", and "Dude, Where's My Car?". But did you know that he's also a very successful tech investor?
Hollywood's Most Successful Tech Investor
Ashton isn't the first celebrity to get into investing but he definitely stands out by being Hollywood's most successful and experienced tech investor. He was early in Airbnb and Uber which are obviously big wins.
Background Story
When Ashton was younger, he had to hustle and do a lot of different jobs including being a janitor, mowing lawns, and even washing dishes. At age 13, he even worked during weekends and after school for more than a year just so he can buy a snowmobile.
His parents had blue-collar jobs as a meat packer and teacher and when he was studying Biochemical Engineering in Iowa, he was scouted as a model which was his introduction to the acting world.
Getting Into Investing
In 2000, Ashton started the Katalyst Network which started to open up doors for him in Silicone Valley. He got more familiar with the tech industry and in 2009, he invested $1M in Skype which later had a very successful exit to Microsoft.
That next year, Ashton started a VC firm with his business partners Guy Oseary and Ron Burkle and in 6 years, they turned a $30M fund to $250M by investing in companies such as Warby Parker, Uber, Airbnb, Spotify, and SoundCloud. He also founded Sound Ventures which has made over 60 investments and has over $100M under management.
You Can Have It All
With these investments, Ashton's net worth is now at $200M. But maybe his biggest win yet is being married to Mila Kunis and having 2 beautiful children. You really can have it all!
Add me for more 🙋🏻♀️
By Janet Lee
Janet Lee is an MBA candidate at the UCLA Anderson School of Management on a full-tuition fellowship. She is currently working for TenOneTen Ventures, Visible Hands VC and Tech Coast Angels. Before business school, she started two businesses, a tech-forward real estate brokerage and international trade & logistics company. Her MBA focus is venture capital, for which she was recently awarded the Deutschman Venture Fellowship.
