"We try not to talk down to our kids" - Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian shares how the couple 'tightly control' daughter Olympia's virtual fun
Serena Williams' husband and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has revealed that the couple keeps a tight check on the internet usage of their daughter Olympia.
While Ohanian has built his career through social media, the tech mogul wants to keep his daughters off from it. During an appearance on the podcast 'On Purpose With Jay Shetty', the 41-year-old claimed that while he was to explain the concept of the internet in detail to Olympia, he and Williams tried to make sure to respect her intelligence and maturity.
"I've already had these conversations with Olympia and she just turned 7 and I try generally, I think my wife and I both; we try not to talk down to our kids. Like I really will explain the concept in detail but not like I would to a 41-year-old," he said [7:54 onwards].
However, despite not wanting to understand the internet, Olympia does like playing Roblox, and Williams and Ohanian have made sure to keep tight control of her usage.
"But there have been little glimpses that I have given her into it but very very tightly controlled. Really the only time she is ever online right now at 7 is playing Roblox. She will do it with me or her mom or some friends from school. She knows the internet basically as this place for Roblox and a place where she has fun," he added.
While both Olympia and her sister Adira have their social media accounts, they are run by their parents, and father Alexis Ohanian hopes to keep them off from it.
"I would like to put off social media. Yes our kids have social media accounts, it's run by us and now that she is at the age of consent, it's basically we are quite literally putting her photos out because she is like, 'Oh yeah you could post this up'. But yeah, the understanding is social media is something I would like to put off," the 41-year-old added.
Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian met for the first time in 2015 at a restaurant in Rome and the Reddit co-founder proposed to her at the same restaurant in December 2016. The couple tied the knot two months after welcoming daughter Olympia in 2017 and three years later, Ohanian left Reddit to make a better world for her.
"To make a better world for Olympia" - Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian explains why he left Reddit in 2020
Alexis Ohanian founded Reddit with his University of Virginia roommates Steve Huffman and Aaron Swartz in 2005, and after building the company for over 15 years, the 41-year-old resigned in 2020 and encouraged his colleagues to hire a black candidate in his place. In a move to express his solidarity with the black community, he also pledged a $1M donation to Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp.
“I’m writing this as a father who needs to be able to answer his black daughter when she asks: ‘What did you do?’. I have resigned as a member of the Reddit board, I have urged them to fill my seat with a black candidate, and I will use future gains on my Reddit stock to serve the black community, chiefly to curb racial hate, and I’m starting with a pledge of $1M to Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp,” Alexis Ohanian said (via alexisohanian.com).
Ohanian also shared the same as a post on Instagram detailing why we chose to go forward with his resignation.
Speaking with Serena Williams during an interview for People in the following days, Ohanian suggested that his decision was aimed at making a better world for people and his daughter Olympia.
“I thought about what those dollars could do for a community that has clearly suffered for far too long, and that I with my power and my influence and my privilege want to do something meaningful to start to show a change. To make a better world for Olympia," he explained.
The 41-year-old later started 776, an investment fund aimed at bringing positive change in the world, and co-founded NWSL team Angel City FC. He also launched the world's first female-only track league in 2024, Athlos.