Ashton Kutcher invested early in Uber and Airbnb and turned a US$30 million fund into US$250 million – these are the top investment tips from Hollywood’s most active Silicon Valley investor
The former model, No Strings Attached and Just Married star is way more than a pretty face, lately earning a reputation as Hollywood’s most experienced tech investor – so what wisdom does he have to share?
Ashton Kutcher, the once-breakout star of goofy cult comedy Dude, Where’s My Car?, boasts an extensive résumé. “Actor” is just one of the many bullet points the 42-year-old would list as part of his career to date: Kutcher is also a producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist, with various ventures in each of these fields. He also happens to be a very serious investor.
He’s not the first celebrity to break into investing, but more than a decade in, Kutcher has made a name for himself in Silicon Valley. He’s been called the most active celebrity investor and, arguably, Hollywood’s most experienced tech investor.
With a goal to help connect the “little man” with new companies that provide easy solutions to everyday problems, Kutcher began as a cash-rich angel investor before co-founding two venture capital funds: A-Grade Investments and Sound Ventures.
From turning a US$30 million fund into US$250 million in six years, to making early bets on Uber and Airbnb, he’s built a successful and lucrative investing career.
If you can’t sell me, how are you going to sell your first hire, your second hire, your third hire? How are you going to create the capacity for the rest of your team to sell those next hires?
Kutcher’s money prowess started young
As a kid, Kutcher juggled multiple jobs, including lawn mowing, janitorial work and washing dishes.
Kutcher told Grow, the blog of micro investing app Acorns, which he invested in, that he saved US$1,400 for a snowmobile at age 13. “I worked after school and on weekends for one and a half years, and put every cent into a savings account,” he said.
Raised in Iowa, Kutcher comes from blue-collar roots. His father worked at a meatpacking plant and his mother was a schoolteacher. Kutcher was studying biochemical engineering at the University of Iowa when he was scouted as a model, which ultimately let to his break in the acting world.