“Identity crisis” hits: Ohanian reveals daughters inspired Reddit exit

Alexis Ohanian, Reddit founder and Serena Williams' husband.

Alexis Ohanian, Reddit founder and Serena Williams’ husband.LAPRESSE

Alexis Ohanian, the tech titan who co-founded Reddit, has peeled back the curtain on his dramatic exit from the social media giant-and it’s all about family. In a candid chat shared on X on March 24, Ohanian opened up about how his daughters, Olympia and Adira, became the heartbeat behind his decision to step away from the company he built from the ground up. Married to tennis legend Serena Williams, this dad of two isn’t shy about how fatherhood flipped his world upside down.

Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian surprise their daughter Olympia with a pony | The Independent

“I’d spent 16 years building this company, and suddenly I was in full-blown identity crisis mode,” Ohanian confessed in the clip, per EssentiallySports. After resigning from Reddit’s board in 2020 amid protests over George Floyd’s death, he thought other execs might follow his lead. They didn’t.

Left grappling with who he’d be without Reddit, he found his anchor in his girls. “Olympia was, in many ways, my North Star,” he said. “I want to keep building businesses… in a way that I can brag to my daughters and hopefully grandkids about one day.”

Why Alexis Ohanian quit Reddit: A tale of love and legacy

Ohanian’s Reddit journey started in 2005, turning a college idea into a $10 billion empire. But by 2020, he’d had enough-walking away to protest the platform’s stance on hate speech. What followed was a pivot to Seven Seven Six, his venture capital firm launched that same year, now valued near $1 billion.

“I’m being recognized for everything I’ve done in the four years since leaving Reddit, which delights me,” he posted on X last September. It’s a glow-up driven by love, not just ambition.

Fatherhood’s clearly his fuel. With Olympia, 7, and Adira, born in 2023, Ohanian’s all about showing up. “I want to be doing it in a way that I know I’m going to be proud of,” he added, per the interview. X fans are eating it up-one user gushed, “Olympia and Adira are his legacy goals now.” From Reddit’s chaos to backing women’s sports like Angel City FC and Athlos, Ohanian’s rewriting his story, one his daughters can cheer for.