Serena Williams Expands VC Mission to Empower Diverse & Impact-Driven Founders

By: WE staff | Friday, 27 June 2025

• Serena Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam champion and 4-time Olympic gold medalist, is increasing her task capital efforts
• She is centered on assisting founders often ignored through conventional VC corporations
• Her investments prioritize ladies, human beings of color, and marketers in underserved markets

Serena Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam champion and 4-time Olympic gold medalist, is deepening her impact in venture capital by way of championing underrepresented founders—in particular women, people of colour, and people solving health and fairness demanding situations in underserved markets.

Recently named the primary-ever entrepreneur-in-residence at Reckitt, the British health large in the back of brands like Lysol and Durex, Serena will mentor and assist startups targeted on hygiene, maternal care, and fitness equity—areas often left out by traditional VC. Her appointment aligns with Reckitt’s launch of ‘Catalyst’, a £10 million initiative aiming to guide two hundred underrepresented founders and enhance health get entry to for 5 million people by way of 2030.

“This isn’t charity—it’s smart enterprise,” Serena said, highlighting that girls-led startups outperform yet receive much less than 3 percent of global VC investment. She sees untapped capacity in sectors like hygiene, especially for girls, mothers, and children.

Since launching Serena Ventures in 2014, she’s backed over 14 unicorns, raising a $111 million fund to assist various early-degree businesses in fitness, fintech, and customer tech. Her new function will combine mentorship with strategic networking to assist Catalyst marketers grow and access new markets.

“Venture is about relationships,” Serena mentioned. “A short communication can free up big opportunities.” She’s already connecting Catalyst founders with her present portfolio, emphasizing that expanding opportunity for ladies isn’t about with the exception of men—it is approximately growing the ecosystem.

Serena is redefining publish-sports achievement by scaling effect-driven making an investment and proving that inclusion gives you strong returns.