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     2004. Los Angeles.

Shaquille O’Neal was an absolute NBA star.

But off the court, he was looking for something that would last longer than his career.

One day, in the lobby of the Four Seasons, Shaq overheard two young men talking about a new type of search engine.

They were talking about “organizing all the information in the world.”

The young men?
Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

Shaq listened. He liked it.

And he asked: “Can I invest?”

They agreed.

Shaq put money into the project—discreetly, without fully understanding the magnitude of it.

Life went on. Games. Titles. Sponsorships.

And he simply… forgot.

Until, years later, watching TV in the morning, he saw the headline:

“GOOGLE HOLDS IPO TODAY.”

Shaq froze.

He looked at the screen.

And thought:

“Wait… I think I put money into this.”

He called his accountant.

Minutes later, he received confirmation:
Yes. He had invested in Google.
Yes. It was now worth a fortune.
Shaq burst out laughing.
And he learned one of the greatest lessons of his life:
> “Work so that your money works for you.”
Today, Shaq invests in Apple, Lyft, Ring, Vitaminwater, Five Guys, Papa John’s, and dozens of other companies.
He became more than an athlete.
He became a case study in the silent building of wealth.
The best move in the game, sometimes, isn't where you spend the most time.
Shaq taught that:
When you expose yourself to the right opportunities, just one is enough to change everything.
When you learn to invest, it doesn't matter if you forget—money doesn't forget to work.
When you think like an owner, not like a celebrity, you build wealth—not just fame.
In the end, vision is worth more than strength.

![](https://m.stacker.news/119917)

How Shaq invested in Google… and only remembered years later.

Before becoming a billionaire, Marc Lore was broke, living in his childhood bedroom with his wife and children, drowning in debt.
Until he decided to sell diapers online.
Everyone laughed. "Who would buy diapers online?"
But Lore saw something unique: time was the new currency.
In 2005, he launched Diapers.com from a small office in New Jersey.
No investors.
No technology experience.
He himself packed boxes in the middle of the night.
The model didn't make sense on paper, but Lore knew that by making life easier for parents, they would come back.
And they did—in the millions.
Diapers.com became Amazon's biggest competitor in baby products.
Jeff Bezos started a brutal price war.
He was willing to lose millions to destroy him.

  2010. Lore made the hardest decision:
He sold to Amazon for $545 million.
Most would have retired.
But not Marc.
He studied Amazon from the inside and had a new idea.
In 2014, he launched Jet.com.
An e-commerce based on smart pricing and efficiency.
In less than two years, it became the fastest-growing competitor.
In 2016, Walmart bought it for US$3.3 billion.
Two billion-dollar exits in less than a decade.
But the story doesn't end there.
In 2021, he announced something unexpected:
Telosa — a city of the future designed for justice, sustainability, and opportunity.
Cost: US$400 billion.
Goal: 5 million residents.
Timeline: 40 years.
For many, impossible.
For Marc Lore — the guy who sold diapers online while in debt — "impossible" is just the starting point.
Because some people build companies.
Others build futures.
Marc showed what a single idea can become.

![](https://m.stacker.news/119792)

From Debtor to Billionaire: The Incredible Turnaround of Marc Lore

I talk about the market and tell real stories about companies and entrepreneurs.