Luxury magnate Bernard Arnault, founder and CEO of LVMH and the world’s fourth-richest individual with a net worth of $184 billion, is turning his attention to artificial intelligence. Through his tech-focused venture firm and family office, Aglaé Ventures, Arnault has made a series of AI investments in 2024, signaling his growing interest in this transformative technology.
According to exclusive data provided to CNBC by Fintrx, a private wealth intelligence platform, Aglaé Ventures has made five AI-related investments this year. While the specific amounts of these investments remain undisclosed, the funding rounds for the AI firms totaled over $300 million.
The largest investment this year was in a French startup called H, formerly Holistic AI, which is working towards achieving full artificial general intelligence. Founded by former members of Google’s DeepMind AI unit, H attracted $220 million in a funding round in May, which included Aglaé and valued the company at $370 million. Other prominent investors in H include Accel Partners LP and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
Aglaé also participated in a $25 million seed round for Lamini, a Palo Alto-based startup developing enterprise AI applications, and a $12 million series A round for Proxima, a New York-based AI-driven digital marketing firm. Additionally, Aglaé invested in the $27 million seed round for Toronto-based Borderless AI, a human resource management platform, and in a $43 million investment round for Photo room, a France-based AI image editor.
This year’s AI investments are part of a broader strategy by Arnault, whose family office has been an active player in technology investments since 2017. Aglaé has previously backed successful tech startups, including Netflix, Spotify, and Airbnb.
While Aglaé’s investments predominantly focus on technology, the firm has also invested in consumer goods, business services, and financial services. Notably, Aglaé has refrained from investing in luxury sectors, where Arnault’s LVMH empire dominates. However, the family office has shown interest in the art and digital space, investing in platforms like LaCollection, a digital art marketplace.
Arnault’s investment strategy reflects his dual passion for luxury craftsmanship and cutting-edge technology. In a May speech at the LVMH Innovation Awards, he highlighted the parallels between the startup mentality and LVMH’s values of creativity, quality, and entrepreneurial spirit, underscoring his commitment to fostering innovation both within and beyond the luxury industry.
