Jennifer Bubeltwitter
Sports Journalist, AS USA
Sports journalist who grew up in Dallas, TX. Lover of all things sports, she got her degree from Texas Tech University (Wreck ‘em Tech!) in 2011. Joined Diario AS USA in 2021 and now covers mostly American sports (primarily NFL, NBA, and MLB) as well as soccer from around the world.
Update: Aug 22nd, 2026 09:34 EDT
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Serena Williamsspent more than two decades becoming one of the most recognizable athletes in the world. But while she was collecting Grand Slam titles and building one of the biggest brands in sports, she was also quietly developing another career.
Long before venture capital became a major part of her public profile, Williams wasputting her own money into startups. More than a decade later, that early strategy has turned into a substantial venture operation.
https://x.com/Forbes/status/1299387437530128387
Serena Williams started investing before she became a venture capitalist
Williams’ investment career didn’t begin when she stepped away from tennis. In fact, she was already several years into it by the time she publicly announced Serena Ventures.
She began making startup investments in 2014, focusing heavily on early-stage companies. By 2019, Forbes reported that she had invested in 34 startups during the previous five years. Those investments included companies such as Daily Harvest, The Wing, and Lola, while Williams also became an early investor in MasterClass.
https://x.com/hashtag/SelfMadeWomen
That early-stage focus was deliberate. Williams had discovered that investing before companies became established gave her the opportunity to find businesses that traditional investors might overlook.
It also gave her experience, something that celebrity investors don’t always have. By the time Serena Ventures formally raised outside capital, Williams had already spent years learning how startup investing worked, sitting in on pitches, and evaluating young companies. Her involvement wasn’t limited to writing checks, either. Williams has repeatedly described herself as wanting to understand the infrastructurebehind businesses rather than simply serve as their public face.
The $111 million fund changed the scale of Serena’s investing
The biggest step came in 2022, whenSerena Ventures announced that it had raised $111 million for its inaugural fund. The money came from outside investors including CapitalG, Norwest Venture Partners, LionTree, and others, transforming what had largely been Williams’ personal investment operation into a more traditional venture capital firm.
That $111 million figure is sometimes described as the value of Serena Williams’ investment portfolio. It isn’t. It was the size of Serena Ventures’ inaugural fund – capital raised to invest in startups – rather than a valuation of Williams’ personal wealth or a guarantee of what those investments are now worth. Venture capital returns aren’t measured simply by adding up the valuations of every company in a portfolio. A startup can be valued at $1 billion without an investor being able to immediately turn its stake into cash, and private-company valuations can change substantially between funding rounds. Still, the fund’s track record has become increasingly difficult to ignore.
Serena Ventures has backed 16 unicorns
One of the most eye-catching numbers associated with Williams’ investment career is 16. According to Williams and the firm, 16 companies in the portfolio have reached unicorn status, meaning they have been valued at more than $1 billion. MasterClass, Impossible Foods, Noom, Tonal and Esusu are among the companies associated with that group.
https://x.com/BloombergTV/status/1506702001991733251
The list is particularly notable because many of these investments came when the companies were much smaller. Williams has made a point of investing at the earliest stages, when a startup can still be little more than an idea or an early product. That strategy carries considerably more risk than investing in established companies, but it can also produce much larger returns when a startup becomes a major business.
Why does Serena Williams invest in startups?
There is a clear philosophy behind the portfolio. Serena Ventures has focused heavily on founders from backgrounds that have historically received a relatively small share of venture capital, particularlywomen and people of color. In 2022, Williams said 78% of the firm’s portfolio companies had been founded by women and people of color.
https://x.com/BloombergTV/status/1506286238072033301
Williams has argued that this isn’t simply a diversity initiative. She believes the lack of investment in these founders creates an opportunity for investors who are willing to look where others aren’t.
That philosophy also reflects her own experience. Williams spent her career operating in spaces where she was frequently one of very few Black women in the room. Her perspective gives her access to founders and communities that traditional venture firms may not reach as easily.
The firm says its purpose is toexpand access, ownership, and opportunity while backing founders reshaping how people live, work, move, and connect.
And Williams’ celebrity status can give those founders something beyond money. Her network spans sports, entertainment, fashion, technology, and business, while her personal brand can bring attention to companies that might otherwise struggle to get noticed.
Some of Serena Williams’ biggest investments
Among the best-known companies backed by Serena Ventures is MasterClass, the online education platform that connects users with high-profile instructors. Williams has said she wrote one of the company’s earliest checks, making it one of the clearest examples of her preference for getting in early.
Impossible Foods is another prominent investment. The company became one of the biggest names in the plant-based food industry, turning what was once considered a niche market into a major consumer category.
Serena Ventures has also backed fintech company Esusu, health-focused companies such as Midi and HUED, and connected fitness company Tonal. The firm’s current portfolio covers a wide range of industries rather than concentrating on one particular technology or consumer trend.
Coinbase is another notable name associated with Williams’ early investment portfolio, while companies such as Daily Harvest and Noom have also received backing from Serena Ventures.
The common thread isn’t necessarily the industry. It’s the opportunity to identify a company with significant growth potentialbefore that potential becomes obvious to everyone else.
Serena Ventures is now Starfire Ventures
Williams’ investment operation has entered another phase in 2026. Serena Ventures recently rebranded asStarfire Ventures, with Williams continuing as managing partner alongside general partner BethFerreira. Williams explained that she wanted the firm to become bigger than her own name and have a life beyond her personally.
The change is more than cosmetic. After more than a decade of building the portfolio, Williams is now trying to turn the investment firm into an enduring institution rather than a company defined solely by its famous founder. That means the Serena Ventures name may eventually disappear from the headlines, but Williams’ investment philosophy is likely to remain at the center of the business.
Starfire has already backed more than 100 companies and 16 unicorns, according to recent reporting, giving the firm a track record that extends well beyond the celebrity-investor label.
https://x.com/FastCompany/status/2082463063177822402
Serena Williams is looking for the next big thing
The next goal may be even more ambitious. In a recent interview, Williams said shewants to find the next trillion-dollar company. That doesn’t mean Starfire expects every investment to become a mega-company. Venture capital is built around a portfolio in which many investments may fail while a small number of exceptional companies generate outsized returns.
Williams’ advantage is that she’s been playing this game for more than a decade already. She entered venture investing while she was still one of the world’s dominant athletes, learned the business through early-stage investments, and eventually raised a nine-figure fund. Now, with 16 unicorns already in the portfolio and more than 100 companies backed, the former tennis champion is looking for the next generation of companies capable of changing entire industries.
After building her career on repeatedly finding ways to win when the stakes were highest, Serena’s venture capital is a surprisingly natural second act. And unlike her tennis career, this one is only getting started.
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