The 28-year-old auto tech titan, Austin Russell, has acquired an 82% stake in Forbes Global Media Holdings, the parent company of the well-known business magazine.
The parties said in a statement Friday that the deal values the company at nearly $800 million. The seller, Hong Kong-based Integrated Whale Media Investments, will retain a minority stake. The Forbes family will not, though Steve Forbes will remain involved.
Russell is the CEO of Luminar Technologies Inc. , which provides contrasting driving technology to the auto industry. The company, which has a market capitalization of $2.1 billion, reported $40.7 million in sales last year and is not profitable.
Russell plans to serve as a visionary for the Forbes brand and will not be involved in day-to-day operations, according to the statement.
Forbes plans to appoint a new board of directors made up of American media, technology and artificial intelligence experts. An integrated whale game will hold one seat for the board.
The magazine was founded in 1917 by BC Forbes, a Scottish immigrant and columnist for the Hearst newspaper chain.
Forbes competes with Bloomberg in providing business news.
