How sports-tech power couple Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian make and spend their millions
![Alexis Ohanian (center), Olympia Ohanian (left), and Serena Williams.](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Charles Krupa/AP
- Serena Williams, one of the greatest athletes ever, is married to Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian.
- Separately, they've accrued vast amounts of money thanks to their successful careers.
- Their combined wealth allows them to make fascinating investments and lead a fabulous lifestyle.
Serena Williams is arguably the most dominant tennis player in the history of the sport, earning over $90 million in prize money throughout her career.
Alexis Ohanian founded the popular website Reddit and became a multimillionaire at age 23 when he sold it.Β
The two met in May 2015, married shortly after, and have two children. Their estimated combined net worth is $330 million, which they spend on beautiful homes and a globe-trotting lifestyle.Β
Take a look at how the sports-tech power couple make and spend their millions.
![Serena Williams wears a white tennis dress and pink sleeves in front of a crowd](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
Her wealth, in large part, comes from earning more than $94 million in career prize money β considerably more than any other professional women's tennis player.Β
![A Nike advertisement on a large scale digital billboard on the exterior of the Outernet building featuring tennis champion Serena Williams in London reading "Been there, won that"](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images
She's partnered with Nike, Beats by Dre, Gatorade, Subway, Gucci, JPMorgan Chase, Tempur-Pedic, Ford, Aston Martin, Audemars Piguet, Intel, and Wilson.
![Serena Williams holds sunglasses on her face in front of a green Balmain Paris backdrop](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP
"I wanted to showcase a lot of fringe," she said, explaining the inspiration for her designs to Women's Wear Daily in 2015.
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Brad Barket/Getty Images for AYS
That year, she and the company conducted a survey looking at Americans' perceptions of the gender pay gap. On average, women continue to earn less than men, according to Pew Research.
![Serena Williams building Nike](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Nike
Nike's headquarters, located in Beaverton, Oregon, includes a 1-million-square-foot building with 140 tennis courts, which Nike named the Serena Williams Building. Williams became a Nike athlete in 2003.
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Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
The movie dramatized the sisters' childhood, when their father served as their coach and helped them rise to tennis stardom. Williams hoped sequels would follow, focusing on the ways Serena's and Venus' stories diverged, she told Business Insider in 2022.
![Alexis Ohanian in a tux next to Serena Williams in a green dress](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
The two married in 2017, less than two years after they met and a month after the birth of their first child.Β
Williams told Vanity Fair she knew he was going to propose when he asked her to fly to Italy. "I was like, 'Serena, you're 35, you're ready. This is what you want,' " she remembered thinking.
![Alexis Ohanian in a suit stands in front of many protesters holding signs reading "Stop PIPA"](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
AP Photo/Richard Drew
A year later, he sold the site to CondΓ© Nast for $10 million. He was 23 years old.
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Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Reddit is now worth billions. Ohanian later said the money was enticing because his mother was sick with terminal cancer at the time.Β
"The deal was months in the making, and I wish I'd had more advisors around the table giving me more perspective on the sale," he wrote on Twitter, now X, in 2020.
After leaving Reddit in 2009, he had stints at various companies like the travel search site Hipmunk, the startup accelerator Y Combinator, and the social enterprise Breadpig.
![Alexis Ohanian on stage in front of a colorful red and green digital background](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Seb Daly/Web Summit via Getty Images
His resignation was in response to the site's long reputation as a platform for racist and misogynistic content, as well as for misinformation. He urged the company to fill his seat with a Black candidate instead.
Michael Seibel joined as the company's first Black board member days later.
![Alexis Ohanian sits on stage wearing red sneakers and mic](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Noam Galai/Getty Images
In 2020, Ohanian also left Initialized Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm he co-founded in 2011.Β
A year later, he announced a new VC firm called "Seven Seven Six."Β
The firm has invested in women's track and Colin Kaepernick's AI company. Previously, Ohanian pledged $1 million to Kaepernick's Know Your Rights Camp using his Reddit stock gains.
![Alexis Ohanian and Serena Williams got married in 2017.](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Mike Coppola/MG19/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue
![Serena Williams in a gray dress with Alexis Ohanian in a tux at the 2018 Brand Genius Awards](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Ohanian sat down next to Williams outside by the pool, Vanity Fair reported in 2017. After trying to get him to move to a new table, she and her friends invited him to join them.
Ohanian had never watched Williams play β and wasn't much of a tennis fan β but he agreed to come to her match that night.
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John S Lander/LightRocket via Getty Images
The pair walked around the Jardin des Plantes, and Ohanian bought Williams some candy.Β
Two chaperones accompanied them on their first date, Williams' agent and assistant, Ohanian recently said on TikTok.Β
Ohanian then went to watch her play in the French Open later that week.
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REUTERS/Remo Casilli
He got down on one knee at the same table where they had sat over a year before.Β
![Serena Williams holds a microphone in front of a purple background](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Matt Rourke/AP
To pay for the 17-carat diamond, Ohanian used part of the $50 million he got from crypto exchange Coinbase and other investments, he told Forbes in 2023.
![Serena Williams with the with the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup at the 2017 Australian Open](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Scott Barbour/Getty
Ohanian cheered on Williams, who won her 23rd Grand Slam and earned $2.7 million.
![Alexis Ohanian holds baby Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. who is wearing a red and white headband with a re bow at at tennis match](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
AP Photo/Chuck Burton
Following in her mother's footsteps, Olympia is a burgeoning fashion icon.
Olympia became the youngest person to grace the cover of Vogue at three months old.
![Alexis Ohanian holds daughter Olympia Ohanian on his lap while watching a soccer game at at BMO Stadium](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
At the time, Olympia, who was two, was the youngest owner of a professional sports team.
![Alexis Ohanian in a tux next to Serena Williams in an ombre pink, black, and white feathered wrap over a silver jumpsuit](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Williams wore an estimated $3.5 million worth of jewelry at the ceremony. For the reception, she changed into a pair of sparkly Nikes covered in Swarovski crystals.
![Serena Williams wears a pink dress next to Alexis Ohanian in a suit and gray tie](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Shaun Botterill/Getty
Williams and Markle have been friends since 2014.Β
"She quickly became a confidante I would text when I was traveling, the friend I would rally around for her tennis matches, and the down to earth chick I was able to grab lunch with just a couple weeks ago in Toronto," Markle wrote on her blog, The Tig, in 2014.
![Serena Williams and Venus Williams hold Dolphins jerseys with their names on them and the numbers 89 and 11](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Charles Trainor Jr./Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
Williams and her sister, Venus, became partial owners of the Miami Dolphins in 2009.
![Alexis Ohanian in the stands at Allegiant Stadium wearing a black baseball cap](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Chris Unger/Getty Images
"My dad had two nosebleeds for a number of years, and I upgraded his seats to four seats at the front row around the 50-yard line," he told CNBC in 2018.
![Alexis Ohanian and Serena Williams and their daughter Olympia all wear black on a red carpet with AFI film festival written on the black backdrop](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
The family purchased the 6,000-square-foot home in 2017. It has a bar, pool, and spacious kitchen but no tennis court.Β
They spend most of their time in Florida, where they own a stunning property in Palm Beach Gardens. The house includes an art gallery and trophy room.
They also have homes in Paris and Bel Air. One of her houses has an entire closet dedicated to her shoe collection.
![Serena Williams carrying a baby carrier next to a light blue SUV](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Alexander Tamargo/GC Images
![Alexis Ohanian wearing a black t-shirt and jacket against a black-and-white background](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for WIRED25
Ohanian also buys comics and video games.
![Serena Williams in a sleveless beige suit against a vibrant pink background](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
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In 2011, the United Nations Children's Fund appointed Williams as a goodwill ambassador. UNICEF noted her work in Ghana in 2006, handing out anti-malarial nets and promoting vaccinations.Β
When Colin Kaepernick's 2018 Nike ad sparked controversy, she tweeted that she was "especially proud" to work with the brand. She previously voiced her support for the NFL player's activism as well.Β
![Alexis Ohanian smiles in the crowd at the Australian Open](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson
![Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian attend the 2023 Met Gala.](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Mike Coppola/Getty Images
The tennis player posted pictures of herself and Ohanian on Instagram, writing: "Was so excited when Anna Wintour invited the 3 of us to the Met Gala."
![Serena Williams wears a red-white-and-navy crop top with Alexis Ohanian who is wearing a white baseball hat and camo jacket](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Nick Tre. Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
"Adira is a girl's name of Hebrew origin and means 'mighty,' 'strong,' and 'majestic.' The elegant name is popular in many cultures around the world," Williams wrote on Instagram on her daughter's first birthday. "Adira is the feminine form of the classic name Adir. It is a Biblical name, meaning 'Strong One.' "
![Serena Williams, Alexis Ohanian, and daughter Olympia in the crowd at the Paris Olympic Games](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Karwai Tang/WireImage via Getty Images
Olympia accompanied her parents to the 2024 Olympics in Paris this summer and on an island-hopping vacation last winter.
![Alexis Ohanian onstage seated in a white chair in front of a backdrop that reads Sportico Invest](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Bryan Bedder/Sportico via Getty Images
Doctors feared the nodules on his thyroid might be cancerous, so they removed half of the gland.Β
"The worst part tbh has been not being able to lift for 2 weeks but big fella will be back at it next week and I took my girls to Disney World this week so life is wonderful," he wrote on Instagram.
He urged other men, especially fathers, to go to the doctor for regular checkups. Earlier this year, Ohanian was diagnosed with Lyme disease as well.
![Serena Williams waves to a crowd wearing tennis whites and holding a large white bag](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali
Β In August 2022, she announced her intention to retire after the US Open.Β
"If I were a guy, I wouldn't be writing this because I'd be out there playing and winning while my wife was doing the physical labor of expanding our family," she wrote in an essay for Vogue.
![Serena Williams wearing a black tennis dress and holding a raquet on a court](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images
In 2021, she made $45.9 million. Most of that money came from endorsement deals and other ventures.
![Serena Williams of the United States reacts during the Western & Southern Open.](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
"I've actually never played for money β I just thought you would go out there and hold a trophy," Williams said on "Kneading Dough," a personal-finance video series, in 2018.
She tried to deposit her first million-dollar check through a bank drive-thru before the teller told her she needed to come inside for such a large transaction.
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Along with Alison Stillman, Williams launched Serena Ventures in 2014. The firm's goal is to fund women and other founders who are underrepresented.Β
"I've invested in over 85 companies, and I also have about 14 unicorns," Serena said in an April TikTok video. Unicorns are privately owned companies valued at over $1 billion.Β
Some of her investments include MasterClass, Tonal, Impossible Foods, and Noom, Vogue reported in 2022.
![Serena Williams attends the 2024 Vanity Fair Oscars party.](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Lionel Hahn/Getty Images
Williams told Forbes she had goals beyond just being an endorsement athlete, "I want to be in the infrastructure. I want to be the brand, instead of just being the face."
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![Serena Williams wears a red dress and jacket and holds a golf club](../themes/icons/grey.gif)
Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for Michelob ULTRA
One was a "Caddyshack" homage for Michelob ULTRA, and the other was a locker room pep talk for RΓ©my Martin.
She also recently started her own beauty line, Wyn Beauty, and signed a deal with Penguin Random House to write two books.
The first is a memoir about her life, and the second is an inspirational book highlighting what she's learned as a philanthropist and an advocate for women and in her career as an investor with Serena Ventures.Β
This story was originally published on May 2, 2023, and updated on December 17, 2024.
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