"My wife pointed out that if we had another kid, they would be jealous" - Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian on not naming his firm after Olympia

Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian recently shared the story behind the name of his venture capital firm 776. While doing so, he also explained why he chose not to name the firm after their first-born daughter, Olympia .

Williams and Ohanian began dating in 2015 and got married in 2017 in New Orleans. Together, they are the parents to two daughters : Olympia, born in September 2017, and Adira River Ohanian, born in August 2023.

Alexis Ohanian, a tech entrepreneur who co-founded Reddit, has launched multiple successful ventures, invested in various companies, and is a vocal advocate for women's sports.

In June 2020, Ohanian made a bold statement by resigning from Reddit's board due to the platform's lenient stance on hate speech. He urged the remaining board members to appoint a Black individual to fill his seat, leading to the appointment of Michael Seibel, CEO of Y Combinator.

Following his departure from Reddit, Alexis Ohanian founded 776 in 2021. Recently, he took to social media to reveal the story behind the company's name in an Instagram reel.

Ohanian revealed that initially he had planned to name the firm after his eldest daughter, Olympia, as she played a significant role in his decision to leave Reddit and she had also served as his motivation for creating 776.

“I get this question a lot. People want to know what 776 stand for? Well I was originally naming the firm after Olympia, our first born daughter, because she was a part of the inspiration for me to resign and start Seven Seven Six,” Ohanian said.

The tech entrepreneur said he would have named his venture capital firm "Olympia Capital" but didn't name it so as his wife, Serena Williams "wisely" pointed out that naming the firm after Olympia might cause jealousy if they were to have another child, which they now do. Thus, he chose the name 776 as a nod to 776 B.C.E., the year of the first Olympic Games, which was held in Olympia, Greece.

“I didn’t name it Olympia Capital because my wife wisely pointed out that if we’d had another kid, spoiler we do have another kid, they would be jealous. Instead, thinking back to my ancient Greek history classes, 776 BCE was the year of the first ancient Olympic Games. The domain was available and I just went with 776,” he contined.

In sharing a story from the first Olympic Games, the 41-year-old talked about the importance of continuously seeking for greatness and never giving up.

“There’s this great story of a foot race. It was the first Olympic event and this guy who was a cook heard about the Olympics, gets off his shift and goes to Olympia and ends up winning. Here is this cook who is the greatest runner of his day. It’s because this cook was actually not the fastest person, he was just the fastest one who was invited,” Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian said.

“This is a reminder for us to keep seeking out greatness. Find the next person to build a generational tech company and not settle. That’s our north star, that’s why it’s called 776. Also if you haven’t noticed the shapes, seven sides, seven sides, six sides. It's subtle,” he added.

Serena Williams, Alexis Ohanian & Olympia are co-owners of Angel City F.C.

Serena Williams, Alexia Ohanian and Olympia [Source: Getty]

Serena Williams, Alexis Ohanian, and their first-born daughter Olympia are the co-owners of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) club, Angel City F.C.

Ohanian is the team's largest shareholder and when Olympia was just five-years-old, he purchased stakes in the football club in her name, making her the youngest co-owner in professional sports.

While speaking with PEOPLE magazine in 2023, Alexis Ohanian shared that Olympia does not fully grasp the significance of being the youngest owner in pro sports but that she is a passionate supporter of the team.

"All Olympia knows is that Angel City FC is our team, and she loves cheering for them. I think as she gets older, maybe she'll come to see the different layers to it. Obviously, being the youngest owner of pro sports is pretty fun, but she doesn't actually understand that she is the youngest owner in pro sports. Try to keep that for as long as we can," Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian said.

In addition to Alexis Ohanian, Serena Williams, and Olympia, celebrities such as Natalie Portman, Billie Jean King, and Sophia Bush are also co-owners of the football club.

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