Carmelo Anthony, the NBA All Star who recently re-signed with the New York Knicks, has formed
a venture-capital firm, M7 Tech Partners, together with Stuart Goldfarb, former CEO of Bertelsmann
Direct North America and ex-NBC exec. M7 Tech Partners, based in New York, will invest in and
develop early-stage digital media, consumer Internet and technology startups.
Anthony said in a statement that “for as long as I can remember, I’ve been interested in technology.”
“We are actively looking for ventures with strong leaders creating breakthrough products that resonate
with consumers,” he said. “I particularly have my eye on companies that are involved with wearable
technology and connected devices – these will be huge areas for the future.”
According to Goldfarb, he and Anthony already have visited dozens of companies scouting possible
investment targets “and are excited and optimistic about many of the relationships we are forging.”
Prior to heading Bertelsmann’s direct marketing business for music, video and books in the 1990s,
Goldfarb was an NBC exec VP of business development. Also M7 announced that it made an initial
investment in Hullabalu, a startup developing original storytelling apps for tablets, whose other backers
include SV Angel, Gokul Rajaram, former Google exec and head of product engineering at Square,
and Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit. NYC-based Hullabalu previously announced raising $1.8
million in seed funding.
The name of the venture stands for “‘Melo 7,” which is his nickname and Knicks jersey number.
Anthony’s new contract with the James Dolan-owned Knicks, signed earlier this month, is worth
more than $122 million over five years, ESPN reported.
Source: Variety