Kobe Bryant unveiled a $100 million venture-capital fund on Monday.
Bryant has partnered with Jeff Stibel to launch Bryan Stibel, a vehicle for investing in technology, media and data companies. According to CNBC, where the pair appeared Monday morning to discuss the fund, current investments include videogame maker Scopely and online legal tech firm LegalZoom.
“Playing basketball, the focus is always on winning. Winning championships, winning championships, winning championships. Now, championships come and go. There’s going to be another team that wins another championship, another player that wins another MVP award.” Bryant said on the network. “But if you really want to create something that last generations, you have to help inspire the next generation, and they create something great, and then that generation will inspire the one behind them, right? And that’s when you create something forever. And that’s what’s most beautiful.”
The recently retired Lakers legend met Stibel, who is a long-time entrepreneur and investor, through a mutual friend, according to Wall Street Journal, which first reported the fund on Sunday. The partners are contributing the $100 million themselves and won’t seek outside investors right away, according to the paper.
“It’s the inner belief that a person has that he will endure no matter what the obstacle may be. It’s that persistence, the entrepreneur doing what he or she truly believes in and truly loves to do,” Bryant told the WSJ.
“We don’t want to be in the business of investing in companies so someone can use Kobe as an endorser. That’s not interesting,” Stibel told the WSJ.
Back in April, Bryant’s NBA career ended in dramatic fashion when he scored 60 points in the final game. Bryant won five NBA championships, was an 18-time All Star and is widely considered among the greatest players of all time.