UTA and Investcorp have set up a partnership to invest in tech and pop culture-related startup ventures.
The deal extends the ties between the talent agency and the investment firm that previously had an equity stake in UTA. Investcorp exited as a UTA owner in July. The partners will work through the newly established UTA.VC joint venture.
“As content creators and entertainers recognize the opportunity to monetize their influence in shaping consumer behavior and culture, we believe that UTA has a robust pipeline of investment ideas and a clear vision for the future of the Creator Economy, Web3 and Entertainment on which we look forward to working with them,” said Anand Radhakrishnan, Investcorp’s head of North American Technology Partnerships. He will serve as UTA.VC managing director alongside UTA’s Sam Wick and Clinton Foy.
UTA has been active as an investor in startups and tech ventures for some time. The company’s past investments, prior to the UTA.VC launch, have included putting coin into AwesomenessTV, Lyft, MasterClass, Chamberlain Coffee and Cameo.
“UTA.VC is the next evolution of UTA’s venture platform,” said Wick and Foy. “The strategic partnership builds on our successful previous investments in companies – such as PlutoTV, Radish, ART19 and others – and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to invest and partner with the next generation of companies in this space.”
Late last year, UTA also made moves to invest in video game-related businesses by launching the UTA Acquisition Corp. SPAC with the goal of raising $200 million for acquisitions in the gaming sector. As of Oct. 12, that SPAC has a market cap of $288 million.
