Josh Kushner’s net worth is estimated at approximately $5.2 billion as of August 12, 2026, according to Forbes.
That number is attracting fresh attention after Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger emerged as the leaders of a group acquiring control of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Reports on August 12 valued the deal at approximately $12 billion to $12.5 billion, which would put the Lakers among the most valuable sports franchises ever sold.
So how did Josh Kushner become wealthy enough to participate in a transaction of that scale?
The answer is mostly venture capital — not his family’s real estate empire.
What is Josh Kushner’s net worth in 2026?
Forbes lists Josh Kushner’s real-time net worth at $5.2 billion as of August 12, 2026.
His wealth primarily comes from his ownership of Thrive Capital, the venture capital firm he founded.
Forbes estimates that Kushner owns roughly 66% of Thrive. The company was valued at $5.3 billion during a 2023 transaction in which outside investors acquired a minority stake.
That ownership position alone explains a substantial portion of his personal fortune.
How did Josh Kushner make his money?
Kushner made most of his money by building Thrive Capital into one of America’s most successful technology investment firms.
Thrive has invested in companies including:
- OpenAI
- Stripe
- Spotify
- Databricks
- GitHub
- Slack
- Warby Parker
- Instacart
Some of those investments were made well before the companies reached their current scale.
That is important because venture capital wealth does not normally come from collecting a large salary.
It comes from owning part of the investment firm and sharing in the value created by successful investments.
Thrive Capital is the main source of Josh Kushner’s fortune
Kushner founded Thrive while still in his twenties.
What started as a relatively small New York venture firm gradually developed into a major technology investor.
One early example was Instagram.
Thrive invested before Facebook acquired Instagram for about $1 billion in 2012. Fortune previously reported that Thrive generated an extraordinary return on the investment in a very short period.
But perhaps the most important investment associated with Thrive today is OpenAI.
By late 2024, Thrive had invested roughly $1.3 billion in OpenAI, according to Fortune.
The firm also backed other highly valued technology businesses such as Stripe and Databricks.
These investments helped transform Thrive from a boutique venture fund into a major global investment platform.
How big is Thrive Capital now?
Thrive has continued raising increasingly large amounts of money from institutional investors.
In February 2026, the firm raised a new approximately $10 billion investment fund, its largest yet.
The capital was intended for investments across areas including artificial intelligence, robotics, space and life sciences.
One distinction is important, however:
Money managed by Thrive Capital is not the same thing as Josh Kushner’s personal net worth.
If Thrive raises a $10 billion fund, Kushner does not personally become $10 billion richer.
The money largely belongs to investors who have entrusted Thrive to invest it.
Kushner’s personal wealth instead comes from his ownership in Thrive, his share of investment profits, and his other assets.
Did Josh Kushner inherit his billions?
His family was already wealthy, but Forbes’ estimates of Kushner’s fortune have historically focused primarily on wealth he built through Thrive rather than assuming a future inheritance.
Forbes previously specifically noted that its valuation excluded potential inheritance from the Kushner family’s real estate holdings.
That distinction matters.
Josh’s father, Charles Kushner, built a major real estate business through Kushner Companies.
His older brother, Jared Kushner, also worked extensively in the family’s property empire.
Josh took a different route.
Instead of making real estate the center of his career, he entered technology investing and eventually became wealthier individually than the other prominent members of the Kushner family.
Forbes currently estimates Jared Kushner’s fortune at about $1 billion, compared with Josh’s $5.2 billion.
What companies does Josh Kushner own?
The most important asset associated with Kushner is his stake in Thrive Capital.
He also co-founded health insurer Oscar Health.
Oscar went public in 2021, giving Kushner another connection to a publicly traded multibillion-dollar business. Forbes identifies Oscar as another important part of his entrepreneurial history.
His investment activities have since expanded beyond conventional startups.
Josh Kushner is moving into sports investing
This is where the Lakers story becomes particularly interesting.
Earlier in 2026, Thrive’s long-term investment vehicle Thrive Eternal acquired a stake in Major League Baseball’s San Francisco Giants.
Kushner and Bob Iger then explored buying into a possible NBA expansion franchise in Las Vegas.
Now the pair have moved toward something considerably bigger: control of the Lakers.
Reuters reported on August 12 that Kushner and Iger were purchasing the franchise in a transaction exceeding $12 billion. The Wall Street Journal reported a valuation of approximately $12.5 billion.
Is Josh Kushner personally paying $12 billion for the Lakers?
No — that would be the wrong way to interpret the deal.
The reported valuation represents the value attached to the franchise transaction, not a $12 billion personal check written by Kushner.
Kushner and Iger are leading an investment group, meaning the purchase can involve multiple investors and investment entities.
The exact amount of Kushner’s personal capital committed to the acquisition has not been publicly established in the reporting available so far.
That distinction is particularly important because his estimated $5.2 billion net worth is significantly below the reported valuation of the Lakers.
Why Josh Kushner’s fortune could continue changing
Unlike someone whose wealth sits primarily in cash, Kushner’s estimated fortune is tied heavily to private businesses and investments.
That means his net worth can rise or fall dramatically as valuations change.
Thrive has exposure to some of the world’s most valuable private technology companies, particularly OpenAI.
The company has also increasingly moved toward owning assets that could potentially retain value for decades rather than following the normal venture capital model of investing and exiting.
Sports franchises fit that strategy unusually well.
They are scarce assets.
There are only 30 NBA franchises, and iconic teams such as the Lakers almost never become available.
Josh Kushner’s wealth at a glance
Estimated net worth: $5.2 billion
Main source of wealth: Thrive Capital
Estimated Thrive ownership: About 66%
Other major business: Oscar Health
Notable investments through Thrive: OpenAI, Stripe, Spotify, Instagram and Databricks
Sports investments: San Francisco Giants stake and reported Lakers acquisition group
Lakers deal valuation: Approximately $12 billion to $12.5 billion
Josh Kushner was born into a wealthy real estate family.
But the bulk of the fortune that makes him a billionaire today comes from something different: a series of technology investments made through a venture capital company he built himself.
The Lakers acquisition now signals another evolution.
After spending more than a decade betting on companies that could become enormously valuable, Kushner is increasingly investing in assets that are already almost impossible to replace.
