Talk about a slam dunk. Shaquille O’Neal, 15-time NBA All-Star, four-time NBA Champion and three-time NBA Finals MVP, will join us at TC Disrupt 2023, which takes place September 19-21.
Following nearly two decades in the NBA, Shaq has built an estimated $400 million business empire — moving easily from superstar to mogul. He’ll join us in his role as lead investor in Edsoma, an AI-powered reading, education and communication platform for children. Kyle Wallgren, the company’s founder and CEO, will also take part in this fireside chat.
A committed advocate for children’s literacy, O’Neal has participated in charity basketball events and founded the Shaquille O’Neal Foundation to support underserved youth. It’s not surprising to find him adding edtech to his portfolio, but we’re eager to hear why he chose Edsoma.
Wallgren is a visionary leader committed to making a positive impact through his work, with the ultimate mission to stamp out illiteracy around the world. As a parent, he experienced the challenges of Covid-related school closures, and he founded Edsoma to help parents instill the love of reading in their children and as a way to address decreased reading performance brought on by the pandemic.
The app helps children learn correct pronunciation as they read aloud, and it also lets parents read with their children from any location — think parents who live separately or travel for work, deployed military personnel or far-flung grandparents.
A bona fide business mogul — Shaq earned his MBA in 2005 — O’Neal has invested in companies like Google, Apple and Ring. He’s the second-largest individual shareholder of Authentic Brands Group, and he owns multiple franchising storefronts, including Big Chicken, Papa Johns, Krispy Kreme and many other entrepreneurial ventures.
Kyle Wallgren is a successful entrepreneur with a proven track record of building and selling multiple small businesses. He has sold 10 of the 13 companies he’s launched.
We look forward to learning what qualities Shaq looks for in a founder and how he and Wallgren plan to grow and scale the company.
Shaquille O’Neal will discuss investing in Edsoma, life as a mogul and more at Disrupt by Lauren Simonds originally published on TechCrunch