Any Serena Williams fans would likely recognizeher husband, Alexis Ohanian.
In some ways, he’s her biggest fan of all.
And you’ve likely seen what an adorable couple they make together on the red carpets.
He told theFinancial Times, “I have a bit of a crush on the Statue of Liberty … His family background has given Ohanian a unique perspective and compels him to speak out when he sees injustice.
Looking through his family line, Ohanian explained that it was all shaped by immigration and new opportunity.
With that in mind, he does his best to help immigrants who are seeking visas.
“I felt pretty ambivalent about the whole thing,” Ohanian toldInc.
To him, school was just taking away from time to do what he really cared about.
In school, I was just a kid.
Online, I had authority,” he said (via Inc.).
Ohanian loved video games and building things in the virtual world.
He recalled flipping the test over, walking out, and going to a Waffle House.
I wanted to make a dent in the universe," Ohanian said.
With that epiphany, he realized he wanted to be an entrepreneur and continued forward with that goal.
But he didn’t have the idea for Reddit right away.
He and Steve Huffman’s first startup attempt was called “MyMobileMenu,” a mobile food ordering venture.
“You guys need to build the front page of the internet,” he said, viaInc.
With that direction in mind, Huffman and Ohanian spent the next three weeks developing what became Reddit.
Everything was going well, but about a month into creating Reddit, Ohanian received shocking news.
His then-girlfriend had fallen from a fifth-floor balcony and was in a coma.
Though shocking and tragic, the news did give him some perspective.
“Waking up every morning with a company is a lot of pressure.
Ohanian was only 23 at the time.
Magazinehow quickly the company was acquired, saying it “started with a Halloween party.”
That editor’s husband happened to work in business development at Conde Nast.
After hearing about the company, he set up meetings to buy out Reddit.
The quick acquisition of Reddit was a huge and exciting surprise to Ohanian.
After he got the money, the first person he wanted to call was his mother.
She was sick with cancer at the time and has since passed.
Though they exchanged numbers, it wasn’t obvious that they’d become the power couple they are now.
Williams even thought he was more interested in one of her friends.
But a few months later, she invited him to watch her compete in Paris.
Fortunately, Williams exceeded his expectations, and the two of them explored Paris for hours before her tournament.
From that point on, their relationship and connection only grew.
Williams toldVanity Fairthat she was shocked when the pregnancy test was positive.
How am I going to play the Australian Open?
I had planned on winning Wimbledon this year.”
Despite the initial surprise, the pair took to parenthood wonderfully.
Ohanian takes pride in his role as a father.
The internet entrepreneur seems happy to let his wife take center stage.
And that is the lens through which I look at basically every decision," he explained.
According toCNBC, he’s invested in startups like Impossible Foods and Sorare.
Speaking to CNBC Make It, Ohanian shared how his investing career started.
“I was really lucky.
That time was especially important because his wife, Serena Williams, experienced nearly fatal birth complications.
That experience made Ohanian see the value of paid paternity leave.
While he was lucky to have it, many American companies don’t offer new fathers that benefit.
Ohanian has since become a strong advocate for paternal leave.
He and Serena Williams want another baby
In 2022,Serena Williams announced her retirement from tennis.
In a piece she wrote forVogue, Williams explained that she and Ohanian want to have another baby.
“I never wanted to have to choose between tennis and a family …
Though it was a difficult choice, it felt like the right time.
AfterWilliams shared her plans to stop competing, Ohanian took toInstagramto share his support.
He wrote, “I’ve seen over the last seven years how much y’all love my wife … By seeing her life and experiences up close, he became more aware of the double standard they faced.
Before meeting Williams, Ohanian said wasn’t as aware of what a privilege that was.
But he quickly saw how his wife was not given the same treatment.
