Meghan Markle’s best friend Serena Williams is set to appear alongside Prince Harry in his first appearance of the year at a virtual summit in February, as he continues to earn his keep away from royal life.
The Duke of Sussex, 38, who is currently living in his $14 million mansion in California with Meghan Markle, 40, having stepped back from royal duty, will attend a virtual event on February 3 for BetterUp.
Revealing the news on Twitter, the company’s official page wrote: ‘Breakthroughs happen when you take a break High voltage. Learn how Inner Work builds Mental Fitness with BetterUp CEO @Arobichaux, Chief Impact Officer Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, and world-renowned athlete @serenawilliams.’
The Duchess, 40, and Serena have been close friends since 2014 after having their first ‘real hangout’ at the DirecTV Beach Bowl, although they briefly crossed paths in 2010 at the SuperBowl.
While Harry receives a salary from BetterUp, the firm has not disclosed how much he is paid or if he owns shares or stock options.
It’s not the first time the royal couple have cashed in on their connections, with the Duchess previously cannily using her connections by gifting Oprah Winfrey a coffee from a brand she had invested in to plug to her 19 million followers on Instagram.
Meghan Markle’s best friend Serena Williams is set to appear alongside Prince Harry, 38, in his first appearance of the year at a virtual summit in February, as he continues to earn his keep away from royal life
The Duchess, 40, and Serena have been close friends since 2014 after having their first ‘real hangout’ at the DirecTV Beach Bowl (pictured), although they briefly crossed paths in 2010 at the SuperBowl.
Serena is a close friend of the couple, attended their royal wedding, and has spoken out in defence of Meghan on several occasion.
Last March, Serena praised Meghan saying she was the ‘epitome of class and strength’ following her bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.
‘Meghan is a great person and I think the epitome of strength, the epitome of confidence, the epitome of just selflessness, and the epitome of everything is just her and everything that she’s gone through,’ the tennis player told the Shine series.
The Duchess previously cleverly used her relationships with A-listers to promote a coffee brand she had invested in.
The news that the tennis superstar would be appearing alongside the Duke of Sussex was announced on Twitter yesterday
In December 2020, Meghan’s close friend Oprah promoted a basket of coffee latte treats from Clevrly Blends.
Speaking to her 19 million followers on Instagram, she captioned the post: ‘On the first day of Christmas my neighbor ‘M’ sent to me…A basket of deliciousness! (Yes that M).’
At the time speaking to FEMAIL, Ronn Torossian, CEO of NYC based 5WPR, a leading PR agency said the Duchess’s investment is worth ‘much more than a cheque’ as the product is now likely to become a ‘household name’.
Jasmine Birtles, Founder of MoneyMagpie.com added that the Duchess’s involvement would be worth ‘millions’ in publicity and that she may have struck a good deal thanks to her star power.
Last year the Duke gave a series of bombshell interviews, in which he revealed an astonishing rift with his father as well as accusing an unnamed Royal Family member of racism
Announcing Harry’s appearance at the event last week on Twitter, the couple’s journalist friend Omid Scobie wrote: ‘In his role as Chief Impact Officer at @BetterUp , Prince Harry will join CEO @Arobichaux for a virtual event on Feb 3 to discuss their “bold commitment” to the company’s new #InnerWork initiative.
‘Expect to hear the duke talking about personal stories, challenges, and successes.’
In a separate tweet on its official social media, BetterUp described its #InnerWork initiative as ‘a mindful, conscious effort to organize the inner you’.
The tweet continued: ‘It’s engaging in activities that recharge, reinspire, and reignite your sense of purpose. It’s the work dedicated to ordering your mind.’
Following several TV appearances, including the Winfrey Interview and his talking heads in The Me You Can’t See for Apple TV, this interview may offer another glimpse into his private life.
The royal family are already bracing for Harry’s memoirs, which are due to be released later this year.
Harry promised to give an ‘accurate and wholly truthful’ account of his life, writing as ‘the man he has become.’
Home life during the break-up of the Prince and Princess of Wales’s marriage, the period of Diana’s death and its aftermath, Harry’s relationship with Camilla and past girlfriends are likely to form part of the book, which will be eagerly anticipated by readers.
Meanwhile Harry and Meghan’s interview with Oprah last March sent shock waves around the world as the couple laid bare the extent of their rift with the Firm.
They accused an unnamed Royal Family member of racism, suggesting the relative had asked ‘how dark’ their son would be; said they had been driven out of Britain, in part, by racism; and accused the Palace machinery of failing to support a ‘suicidal’ Meghan.
Harry revealed an astonishing rift with his father, saying his family had cut him off financially while suggesting the Queen had been badly advised and had cancelled a meeting scheduled at Sandringham.
Meghan also accused her sister-in-law Kate of making her cry; suggested senior royals plotted to ensure Archie would never have a title or adequate security; and said officials had failed to stand up for the couple against ‘racist’ commentary, while lying to protect other royals.
Meanwhile the Duke also appeared on Dax Shepard’s ‘Armchair Expert’ podcast in which he compared his life as a mixture of The Truman Show – when Jim Carrey’s character discovers his life is a TV show – and being an animal at the zoo.
When asked if he felt ‘in a cage’ while in royal duties, he said: ‘It’s the job right? Grin and bear it. Get on with it. I was in my early twenties and I was thinking I don’t want this job, I don’t want to be here.
‘I don’t want to be doing this. Look what it did to my mum, how am I ever going to settle down and have a wife and family when I know it’s going to happen again’.
The last time Prince Harry gave an interview from his position at BetterUp, he was slammed on social media as ‘privileged’ and a hypocrite after advising people to leave their jobs in favor of bolstering their mental health (pictured)
He added: ‘I’ve seen behind the curtain, I’ve seen the business model and seen how this whole thing works and I don’t want to be part of this’, before revealing he had therapy after meeting Meghan, which ‘burst’ a bubble and he decided to ‘stop complaining’.
The last time Prince Harry gave an interview from his position at BetterUp, he was slammed on social media as ‘privileged’ and a hypocrite after advising people to leave their jobs in favor of bolstering their mental health.
In December, Harry discussed his role as ‘chief impact officer’ with California-based mental health start-up BetterUp.
Harry said that the world was at the ‘beginning of the mental health awakening’ and spoke about ‘continuing to pioneer the conversation’.
Social media users on Twitter were quick to criticize the ‘woke’ prince, who is sixth in line to the British throne. The couple have a $25 million Spotify deal and a $150 million contract Netflix.
‘Prince Harry says that we should all leave R jobs if we aren’t happy. What about hospital porters hotel workers, women & men just grateful they have work. #princeharry UR so out of touch with real everyday working class people. U have become a figure of laughter and embarrassment,’ @ducchessfake007 tweeted.
‘So multi millionaire Prince Harry who has never held down a proper job in his life and has never had to worry about paying bills says quitting jobs brings joy and it’s actually good for ‘self awareness. Couldn’t make it up, please someone, anyone, make it stop!,’ @helen_spirit1 tweeted.
Harry had previously held a 10-year career with the British Army where he began as a recruit in 2005 at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He was reportedly paid around $45,000 for his contribution.
BetterUp is based at these offices at San Francisco in California. The value of the start up has topped £3billion after securing new funding from some of Silicon Valley’s biggest players
BetterUp offers companies coaching regimes for their employees on topics ranging from mental fitness to nutrition and parenting. Its app costs around $240 per month for each user.
Customers include Google, the Hilton hotel chain and movie studio Warner Bros. The company recently announced plans to open a London office and hire 75 staff.
Harry’s comments come two months after it emerged that the value of BetterUp has topped $4 billion after securing new funding from some of Silicon Valley’s biggest players.
In October, BetterUp, which took on the Duke as ‘chief impact officer’ in March, raised $291 million from investors – valuing the company at around $4.5 billion.
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