In a surprise move, UFC chief Dana White will join the board of directors of Meta Platforms Inc, the tech giant that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg — an avid mixed martial arts fan — announced the addition of White and two other board members, John Elkann and Charlie Songhurst, Monday.
“Dana, John and Charlie will add a depth of expertise and perspective that will help us tackle the massive opportunities ahead with AI, wearables and the future of human connection,” Zuckerberg said in a statement.
In a post on Facebook, Zuckerberg said that he had been working on add the nw board members for a while, and of White he wrote that “I’ve admired him as an entrepreneur and his ability to build such a beloved brand.”
“I’ve never been interested in joining a board of directors until I got the offer to join Meta’s board,” White added in a statement. “I am a huge believer that social media and AI are the future.”
“I am very excited to join this incredible team and to learn more about this business from the inside,” he added. “There is nothing I love more than building brands, and I look forward to helping take Meta to the next level.”
White joins John Elkann, the CEO of European investment firm Exor, and the executive chairman of Ferrari, and Charlie Songhurst, a veteran technology investor, on the board.
Zuckerberg and White are friendly, with the Facebook founder an occasional guest at UFC matches. Zuckerberg has also trained with UFC fighters, and competed in local MMA bouts in California.
White is also very close with incoming President Trump, who Zuckerberg and other tech moguls have tried to forge a relationship with ahead of his second term.
