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Beyond Hollywood: How Ashton Kutcher is Winning in Tech Investments

Silvia Li Sam 2016-05-27T12:30:00+00:00

I remember reading comments criticizing ABC’s Shark Tank for putting Kutcher in the show, posting that he was just another pretty face on TV.

Honestly, I was surprised. Why? Ashton Kutcher has been investing in companies since before it was cool, backing Foursquare and Skype in 2009, and tripling his $1 million investment in Skype when Microsoft bought the video chat platform.

Some of Shark Tank’s most vocal “fans”

You could argue that the income from his Hollywood success is a huge advantage as an investor. Ashton Kutcher’s investment include companies you know well: Uber, Spotify, Soundcloud, and Flipboard. The total value of these four companies? Over 73 billion. Sounds like a pretty “seasoned investor” to me.

But money isn’t everything you need to succeed as a startup. You need a network and you need advice that can help you solve your hardest problems. And to raise money, you need to own certain traits as an entrepreneur. Here’s how Ashton Kutcher does it.

1. Ashton’s Calling: “Improve standard of happiness through technology”

The world faces problems that take more than money and hustle to be solved. On an interview by Grow Acorns, Kutcher mentions he spends a lot of time thinking about new simpler solutions to existing problem. As a recent dad, investor, and actor, time and execution play against his aspirations. So why not invest in people that can do this full-time?

“We have a long way to go in improving the standard of happiness for billions around the world. There are deep needs that exist in people’s lives, and investing in solutions will always be inspiring. Life shouldn’t be something people endure; it can be one magical discovery after the next.”

2. Choosing founders and companies: Integrity, Storytelling, Product

  • Kutcher invests in founders who are generous and are not afraid of breaking boundaries

  • These founders have a great sense of ethics, which helps them lead a team even through tough times

  • They “hack existing solutions or use an antiquated system” to solve users’ pain-points

  • They are great storytellers. They are able to sell it to investors and the press because if they can’t, how are you going to get customers?

3) Providing value to his portfolio companies

Kutcher’s career - from many jobs as a kid to acting in Hollywood - taught him to empathize with the average consumer. Emotions play a big part in people's reactions to products and Kutcher gets it. To push a specific feeling and message to your audience, you need to have strong user empathy.

HR software has existed for a long time, but HR teams weren't that happy using it. Then Zenefits came in with a user-friendly product and was valued at $4.5 billion. Who says HR isn't sexy? As a Zenefits investor, Kutcher has helped them remove friction from processes. Small and large businesses can handle their biggest pain-point - managing payroll and benefits - easier.

With 17.5 million followers on each Twitter and Facebook and his knowledge of the entertainment industry, Kutcher has helped companies like Airbnb break into the mainstream and leverage pop culture. What does this mean? He could promote an app to millions of people with his outreach via Twitter and Facebook. Don’t forget his connections in both Silicon Valley and Hollywood.

4) Personal investment is growth

“Invest in yourself,” says Kutcher. You have to spend time enhancing what you are good at and learning new things. Investigate why certain things happen and dig deeper into it if it sparks your curiosity. Take Steve Jobs’ learning Calligraphy - It’s a safe bet you’ll get asked a question about it one day.

Whether you are a startup founder, an investor, or someone interested in technology reading this post, invest in projects you care about. Ashton Kutcher’s tech investments and successes reflect these philosophies - and by following that intuition, he has started to thrive as an entrepreneur and investor.

Now, the next time that Kutcher is on Shark Tank and someone is skeptical about his skills, you can tell them about +46 investments and how much he enjoys seeing you use Uber and Spotify - his portfolio companies.

    About the Author

    Silvia Li Sam

    Silvia is one of the few Peruvian Chinese immigrants working on the education problem in the United States. Because of her work with underserved youth in Los Angeles and experience with public schools in Peru, she has realized how similar both the American and Peruvian education systems are. She has spent the last year using her expertise in marketing to tackle the education problem in America. Silvia is a social media expert, storyteller, and viral marketer who has created marketing campaigns that have reached millions of people organically. She is the social media specialist at the XQ Institute, a national nonprofit committed to rethink American high schools, create new learning opportunities for young people and open up the possibilities of the wider world. The Institute’s board of directors is chaired by Laurene Powell Jobs, President of Emerson Collective. The CEO is Russlynn Ali, former Assistant Secretary of Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education and is Managing Director of Education for Emerson Collective. Silvia joined the XQ Institute to combine powerful storytelling, social media, and design thinking to make education more accessible to every single person in this country. Prior to XQ, Silvia was a content marketer at Startup Grind, the largest independent startup publication in the world inspiring and connecting 1,000,000 entrepreneurs. She led and grew the largest Medium publication about technology from zero to now 250,000+ readers. The publication includes writers like a technologist, venture capitalist, and New York Times bestseller Steve Blank and Twitter’s co-founder Biz Stone.