Breaking News: NBA Legend Shaq Says ‘I Would Lose Almost Every Time’ When He Invested, Then Adopted Jeff Bezos’s Rule and ‘I Quadrupled What I’m Worth’…see more

Shaquille O’Neal has made a career out of thinking big—on and off the court. But when it came to investing, even the 7-foot-1 superstar admits he didn’t always get it right.

“When I first started investing it was all for monetary purposes only,” O’Neal told forbes in 2020. “You could tell me anything and if it sounded good, I would invest, so I would lose almost every time.” It’s not exactly what fans expect to hear from a man whose net worth now hovers around $500 million.

But early missteps taught O’Neal something he couldn’t learn from an MBA or a highlight reel. His turning point came in Las Vegas, at the Consumer Electronics Show—of all places—where he met Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. “He said that he invests in things that are going to change people’s lives,” O’Neal recalled.

“And I said, you know what, I’m gonna start doing that. And when I did that, every time I invest in something it works.” The logic is simple, but the mindset runs deep. O’Neal began putting money into companies that solved real problems, not just those promising quick gains.

His stakes in Google and Ring are among his most famous wins, but the common thread isn’t tech—it’s people. From early-stage startups to food chains, O’Neal looks for impact. If a business improves someone’s day-to-day life, he’s interested.