In a promotional event for his movie Gemini Man, actor Will Smith decided to invest in a startup. Four start-up founders took the stage for giving a pitch, only one got $10,000 investment.
In Moscone Conference Center, San Francisco, actor Will Smith, and movie director Ang Lee discussed their upcoming movie, Gemini Man. Suddenly Will Smith decided he wanted to invest in a startup. Hence, the host immediately shifted the conversation and invited four startup founders on the stage to deliver a pitch.
As if convincing Will Smith isn’t already enough to engender nervousness among the founders, they were only given 40-seconds each for their pitch. After all Will Smith was going to invest in their startup.
“It’s only an opportunity of a lifetime and everything rides on this, so just relax into that,” Will Smith joked.
The first founder was very nervous. To an extent that he had trouble breathing and speaking properly. However, his product was super cool. The second founder spoke clearly, but her pitch exceeded the time limit. Somehow her product was too complex for a 40-second pitch.
The third founder stepped up, took a light breath, and delivered a well-polished, rhythmic, and concise story. The moment he finished, the crowd erupted and roared cheers. Smith’s open mouth face was enough to understand how impressed he was.
The fourth founder tried but everyone could tell Will Smith’s mind was already made up. In the end, Will Smith stood, announced his pick, and took a selfie with Kofi Frimpong, the third founder, and also gave him permission to use the photo for promotion.
Will Smith also announced he was going to invest $10,000 in a startup called Socionado. Kofi Frimpong is the 30-year-old founder of a startup called Socionado in Los Angeles.
“I start off by capturing the audience, beginning with a Did you know fact in the first sentence. Then I unpack the problem, present the solution (his company), and what makes us excited about this opportunity(size of the industry) – said Kofi Frimpong.
