LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 For a billionaire and a tech investor who also has one of the U.S.' best-known surnames, Josh Kushner has managed to stay off the front pages and out of the world's broader discourse to a remarkable degree.<\/p>\n
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LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 For a billionaire and a tech investor who also has one of the U.S.' best-known surnames, Josh Kushner has managed to stay off the front pages and out of the world's broader discourse to a remarkable degree.<\/p>\n
LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 For a billionaire and a tech investor who also has one of the U.S.\u2019 best-known surnames, Josh Kushner has managed to stay off the front pages and out of the world\u2019s broader discourse to a remarkable degree.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s all changed this summer, at least in the parts of the world with a passion for sports.<\/p>\n
The 41-year-old Kushner and his partner, former Disney CEO Bob Iger, reached a stunning agreement this week to buy the NBA\u2019s Los Angeles Lakers from Mark Walter at a valuation of $12.5 billion \u2014 the highest ever for a team sports sale.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been a wild two weeks for the 41-year-old Kushner, who followed up his failed attempt to purchase a stake in future World Cup profits in a much-criticized plan orchestrated by FIFA President Gianni Infantino by acquiring the glamorous Lakers in a shockingly swift deal.<\/p>\n
Until this month, many people didn\u2019t even know that Jared Kushner \u2014 President Donald Trump\u2019s son-in-law and his longtime lieutenant in government \u2014 had a younger brother with a thriving business empire, a supermodel wife and a passion for basketball.<\/p>\n
While Josh Kushner avoids the spotlight and rarely grants interviews, the success of his venture capital investment firm, Thrive Capital, has boosted him to mogul status in the past few years. Forbes estimates Kushner\u2019s net worth at about $5 billion.<\/p>\n
Kushner\u2019s partner in this historical venture is no secret to anybody, at least in Los Angeles or the entertainment industry or the larger business world. The 75-year-old Iger ran The Walt Disney Co. for two stints over the past two decades, leading the Hollywood behemoth into the streaming age before he stepped away from the Mouse earlier this year.<\/p>\n
Los Angeles is still reeling from the surprise of this deal: Just 10 months after Walter \u2014 the owner currently presiding over the renaissance of the back-to-back World Series champion Dodgers \u2014 formally took control of the Lakers, he essentially flipped them for a possible multibillion-dollar profit to two new owners with none of Walter\u2019s sports ownership experience or credibility among Southern California fans.<\/p>\n
So who are the two men suddenly in charge of LA\u2019s 17-time NBA championship team?<\/p>\n
Kushner and Iger were reportedly introduced by their significant others<\/p>\n
The son of a real estate mogul, Kushner founded Thrive Capital in 2009 and health insurance company Oscar Health in 2012. Thrive Capital grew with early investments in OpenAI and SpaceX, among other tech companies. He remains close with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.<\/p>\n