Investors are looking for opportunities that are not affected by the AI boom
Venture capital funds are typically associated with high-risk investments in technologies with great potential. Recently, however, some venture capitalists have turned to new, more “analog” sectors: sports teams, iconic real estate properties, and even children’s toys, as noted in a related article by the Wall Street Journal.
Investors are seeking opportunities that aren’t affected by the artificial intelligence boom, including businesses based on human experiences that ChatGPT cannot replace.
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Josh Kushner, founder of the investment firm Thrive Capital, is among the investors who recently acquired stakes in some of America’s top sports teams, such as the San Francisco Giants, as well as a $12.5 billion deal that made the Los Angeles Lakers the most valuable sports team of all time.
Jeff Bezos is part of a consortium of investors moving forward with a deal to purchase a minority stake in the Liverpool soccer club in England, along with Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, with the team’s value estimated at over $7 billion.
Mark Stand, founder of Dragoneer Investment Group, acquires a majority stake in the Minnesota Timberwolves, while a group led by venture capitalist and OpenAI supporter Vinod Khosla, is acquiring the Seattle Seahawks.
These legendary teams are rare assets with a loyal fan base and predictable revenue from broadcasting rights, and can offer wealthy investors significant tax advantages.
Some venture capital firms are betting that sports teams are less vulnerable to the rapid pace of artificial intelligence development, which threatens to disrupt parts of the software, legal, and financial sectors.
Real People Playing Sports
“People want to see real people playing sports,” said Sudeep Ramnani, founder of 885 Capital, an investor in the Professional Fighters League, a mixed martial arts league. “That makes sense, given the way the world is changing.”
Some investors expect that the new wealth generated by the boom in artificial intelligence will fuel increased spending on live experiences, luxury travel, real estate, and natural products.
Increasingly, investors are betting on specialized, newly established sports leagues such as the Professional Fighters League, which was founded to compete with the UFC and recently merged with the combat sports company Most Valuable Promotions, owned by social media influencer Jake Paul.
Investing in new sports leagues requires much less capital but carries greater risks, according to some investors. There is no guarantee that they will build a genuine fan base, and there are concerns that declining attention spans will make it difficult to attract and retain an audience. Furthermore, content generated by artificial intelligence is increasingly competing for consumers’ time.
Harley Miller, founder of Left Lane Capital, is one of the early investors in Real American Freestyle, a family-friendly wrestling league co-founded by Hulk Hogan in 2025. Miller said the business has shown real momentum, with a growing fan base willing to travel to watch the matches.
“These are tangible assets, and they’re hard to replicate,” Miller said. “These aren’t speculative assets that will be overshadowed by the release of a new large language model a year from now.”
Left Lane is also an investor in the Pro Padel League, the Snow League—a professional winter sports league founded by Shaun White—and League One Volleyball.
“For us, these aren’t assets we acquire just to brag about,” said Miller, whose firm has also invested in consumer brands such as Blank Street Coffee and 7th Street Burger. “We’re aiming for venture capital-style returns,” which typically amount to a multiple of the initial investment.
AI-Resilient Businesses
The search for AI-resilient businesses has expanded beyond sports and entertainment to tangible assets such as manufacturing and energy.
Barry Diller’s People Inc. is in talks to acquire MGM Resorts, in a deal that values the casino giant at over $12 billion.
“While everyone was rushing to capitalize on all kinds of ‘artificial intelligence opportunities,’ I wanted to go in the opposite direction,” Diller said in a previous interview with The Wall Street Journal.
Beth Ferreira, a partner at the investment firm run by tennis star Serena Williams —who raised $111 million for her first investment fund in 2022—refers to investments in natural products, travel, and wellness the “experience economy.” She has focused her efforts on this sector, believing that people are spending an increasing amount of their lives in front of screens, which makes the moments they spend in the natural world all the more precious.
“We’re really looking for founders who create solutions where technology personalizes and optimizes the experience, without replacing it,” Ferreira said.
Serena Ventures has met with potential investment targets ranging from travel startups to a curling league. One area in which it has invested is StickerBox, a children’s toy company that uses artificial intelligence. Children can ask StickerBox to create an image, which the toy generates using artificial intelligence and then prints as a physical sticker.
This investment has already paid off. StickerBox was acquired in August by Spin Master, the toy company that manufactures the Paw Patrol toy sets. The sale valued StickerBox at $35 million to $50 million.
“Although it’s a contrarian investment relative to artificial intelligence, it’s part of the rise of artificial intelligence,” Ferreira said.
Source: in.gr
