Although Bezos’ pledge was light on specifics, this is the first time he has announced that he plans to give away most of his money. Critics have slammed Bezos for not signing the Giving Pledge, a pledge by hundreds of the world’s richest people to donate most of their wealth to charity.
Exclusive: Jeff Bezos gives his advice on taking risks right now 01:50 – Source: CNN
In an interview with CNN’s Chloe Mela on Saturday at his home in Washington, Bezos, speaking with his partner, journalist-turned-philanthropist Lauren Sanchez, said the couple is “building the capacity to be able to provide that money .”
Asked directly by CNN if he plans to give away most of his fortune in his lifetime, Bezos said, “Yes, I do.”
Bezos said he and Sánchez agreed to their first interview since they started dating in 2019 to shine a spotlight on the Bezos Courage and Civility Award, which was presented this year to musician Dolly Parton.
The 20-minute exchange with Bezos and Sánchez covered a wide range of topics, from Bezos’ views on political dialogue and a potential economic downturn to Sánchez’s plan to visit space with an all-female crew and her thoughts on a thriving business partnership with Bezos.
That working relationship was on display Saturday as Bezos and Sanchez announced a $100 million grant to Parton as part of the Courage and Kindness Award. It’s the third such award, following similar grants to chef Jose Andrés, who spent some of the money making meals for Ukrainians — and climate activist and CNN contributor Van Jones.
“When you think of Dolly,” Sánchez said in the interview, “Look, everyone’s smiling, right? It just shines with light. And all he wants to do is bring light to the worlds of others. And so we couldn’t think of anyone better than to give this award to Dolly, and we know she’s going to do amazing things with it.”
The common thread connecting the Courage and Culture Award nominees, Bezos said, was their ability to bring many people together to solve big challenges.
“I feel honored to be a part of what they are doing for this world,” Bezos told CNN.
Unity, Bezos said, is a trait that will be necessary to tackle climate change, and one he invoked repeatedly as he blasted politicians and social media for fueling division.
But the couple’s biggest challenge may be figuring out how to divide Bezos’ vast fortune. Bezos declined to identify a specific percentage or provide specific details about where it would likely be spent.
Despite being the fourth-richest person in the world, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Bezos has avoided setting a target amount to give away in his lifetime.
Bezos has committed $10 billion over 10 years, or about 8% of his current net worth, to the Bezos Earth Fund, which Sanchez co-chairs. Among its priorities is reducing the carbon footprint of construction-grade cement and steel. pushing financial regulators to consider climate-related risks; advancing data and mapping technologies to track carbon emissions; and building large-scale natural plant-based carbon pools.
Bezos compared his philanthropic strategy to his long-running quest to build a titanic e-commerce and cloud computing machine that has made him one of the most powerful people in the world.
“There’s a lot of ways I think you can do ineffective things as well,” he added. “So you have to think about it carefully and you have to have brilliant people in the team.”
Bezos’ methodical approach to giving stands in stark contrast to that of his ex-wife, philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, who recently gave away nearly $4 billion to 465 organizations in less than a year.
While Bezos and Sánchez make their plans for Bezos’ vast wealth, many people of more modest means are bracing for what economists fear could be a widespread economic downturn.
Last month, Bezos tweeted a warning to his Twitter followers, advising them to “battle the hatches.”
The advice was intended for both business owners and consumers, Bezos said in the interview, suggesting that individuals should consider holding off on buying big-ticket items they’ve been eyeing — or that companies should slow acquisitions. and their capital expenditures.
“Take some risk off the table,” Bezos said. “Keep some dry powder handy…. Just a little bit of risk reduction could make all the difference for this small business if we do get into even more serious financial trouble. You have to play the odds a bit.”
Many may be feeling the pinch now, he added, but he maintained that as an optimist he believes the American Dream “is and will be even more attainable in the future” — projecting that in Bezos’ lifetime, space travel could become widespread accessible to the public.
Sánchez said the pair make “really great teammates,” though he laughed, “we can be kind of boring,” Sánchez said. Bezos smiled and replied, “Never boring.”
Sánchez, the founder of Black Ops Aviation, the first female-owned and operated aerial film and production company, is a trained helicopter pilot. He said in the interview that they both take turns in the driver’s seat.
Bezos has credited his own space travel for helping to inspire his push to fight climate change. Now, it’s Sánchez’s turn.
Sánchez told CNN that she expects to go into orbit herself sometime in 2023. And while she didn’t directly address who would be joining her — quickly ruling out Bezos as a crewmate — she said simply, “It’s going to be a great group of women.” .
Bezos can add NFL owner to his resume. CNN recently reported that Bezos and Jay-Z are in talks about a possible joint bid for the Washington Governors.
It’s unclear if the two have yet spoken with Dan Snyder and his wife, Tanya, the current owners of the NFL team, about the possibility.
But during the interview on Saturday, Melas asked Bezos if the speculation was true.
“Yeah, I’ve heard that buzz,” Bezos said with a smile.
Sanchez said with a laugh: “I like football. I’m just going to throw it out there for everybody.”
Bezos added, “I grew up in Houston, Texas and played football growing up as a kid… and it’s my favorite sport… so we’ll just have to wait and see.”
– CNN’s Chloe Melas contributed to this report
