{"id":32835,"date":"2023-10-20T14:29:15","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T14:29:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/leonardo-dicaprio-joins-celebrity-tech-start-up-investors-startupsmart\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T14:29:15","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T14:29:15","slug":"leonardo-dicaprio-joins-celebrity-tech-start-up-investors-startupsmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/leonardo-dicaprio-joins-celebrity-tech-start-up-investors-startupsmart\/","title":{"rendered":"Leonardo DiCaprio joins celebrity tech start-up investors – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"

Celebrities look set to continue to invest in tech start-ups as the industry enters a second dotcom boom, after Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio invested in Israeli start-up Mobli. <\/span> <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been revealed DiCaprio has joined the growing list of celebrities pouring their money into promising start-ups, namely in the tech sector.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The first start-up to benefit from DiCaprio\u2019s star power is real-time visual media platform Mobli, which has confirmed the actor participated in a $4 million seed round led by \u201chigh profile investors\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

After Mobli users take photos and videos, the app automatically tags each image with a location or major event in the city. Users can also write tags such as \u201csports\u201d or \u201cfootball\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

This tagging system makes it possible to follow specific users, locations and topics. Images for any keyword or place can also be located through search.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

DiCaprio users the platform but only sparingly, posting just seven times. However, he has collected more than 8,000 followers in the process.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The actor, who will take on an advisory position at Mobli, said the app \u201callows people from all over the world to share moments\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mobli chief Moshiko Hogeg said while DiCaprio has \u201czero tech background\u201d, he understands branding and marketing, and will inevitably use his celebrity status to promote the company.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In DiCaprio\u2019s advisory role, Mobli wants the actor to enhance the company\u2019s image.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c[There are] obvious reasons [to work with DiCaprio], such as he\u2019s a major high profile celebrity, which can open a lot of doors,\u201d Hogeg told VentureBeat<\/i>.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThese people are businesspeople too. They invest in real estate and the stock market and no one says anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

DiCaprio joins an increasingly long line of young celebrities investing in start-ups, including Ashton Kutcher, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga and even Justin Bieber.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Local entrepreneur Domenic Carosa, who heads up Future Capital Development Fund, says DiCaprio\u2019s investment in Mobli indicates two things start-ups need to be aware of.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst and foremost, it signals a second version of the internet boom is upon us. Secondly, celebrities getting involved with [start-up] brands is something we will continue to see,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of companies are looking for leverage in their model and their marketing. Celebrities are a way that companies can leverage their existing brand\u2026 so [they] get cost-effective exposure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Carosa says other than mining and technology, the overall economy isn\u2019t performing very well, pinpointing traditional retail as an obvious victim of local and global economic conditions.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom our perspective, the deals we\u2019re now starting to see, and the valuations starting to occur, shows it is definitely the start of what we believe will be the next dotcom boom,\u201d Carosa says.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to Carosa, celebrity-backed start-ups are no different to start-ups that attach themselves to a bigger brand \u2013 because celebrities are a brand in themselves.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf there\u2019s an alignment with the celebrity and the company, it makes sense,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Celebrities look set to continue to invest in tech start-ups as the industry enters a second dotcom boom, after Hollywood<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":62514,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32835"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32835"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32835\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32835"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32835"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32835"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}