Clara Wu Tsai | |
|---|---|
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| Born | Clara Ming-Hua Wu 1966 (age 58–59) Lawrence, Kansas, U.S. |
| Education | Stanford University (BA,MA) Harvard University (MBA) |
| Occupation | Businesswoman |
| Organization | BSE Global |
| Title | Vice Chair |
| Spouse | |
Clara Wu Tsai (born 1966) is an American businesswoman, philanthropist, and social justice activist. She is a co-owner of theBrooklyn Nets of theNational Basketball Association (NBA), theNew York Liberty of theWomen’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), theSan Diego Seals of theNational Lacrosse League (NLL) andBarclays Center.[1][2] She is the founder of the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation, a philanthropic organization; the Social Justice Fund, which focuses oneconomic mobility andracial justice; the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance, which funds health and scientific research; and is a founding partner ofREFORM Alliance, a nonprofit focused onprison and parole reform in the United States.[3]
Tsai was born inLawrence, Kansas, to De Min Wu and Chin-Sha Wu, who were immigrants fromTaiwan.[4][5][6][7] Her father was a professor of economics at theUniversity of Kansas and her grandfather, Wu San-lien, was the first elected mayor ofTaipei City.[4][6][8] Tsai attendedStanford University, receiving both aBachelor of Arts degree and a master's degree ininternational relations in 1988.[4] She later received aM.B.A. fromHarvard University in 1993.[4][9]
Wu Tsai was a senior manager and vice president in the business analysis unit of the finance group atAmerican Express.[4][10] Wu Tsai also worked forTaobao Hong Kong.[10][11]
Wu Tsai was a founding partner ofREFORM Alliance and sits on the board of directors.[12][13]
In 2017, her husbandJoseph Tsai was awarded an expansion license from theNational Lacrosse League for alacrosse team inSan Diego, which they named theSan Diego Seals. Wu Tsai is a co-owner of the team.[14]
In January 2019, Wu Tsai and her husband purchased theBrooklyn Nets and the Nets' arena Barclays Center fromMikhail Prokhorov.[15][16] In 2019, theNew York Liberty were sold to the Tsais and moved the team to Barclays Center. The Tsais gave the team amenities facilities "equal to their male counterparts," according totheNew York Times, and recruited star players likeSabrina Ionescu,Jonquel Jones, andBreanna Stewart.[17]
Wu Tsai is theexecutive producer of thefilmsInto the Okavango, a 2018National Geographic documentary aboutconservation;[18]Blue Bayou, a 2021 drama;[19] Unfinished Business, a 2022 documentary about theWNBA;[20] andLucky Lu a 2025 drama;[21]
Wu Tsai serves on the board of trustees for Stanford University,Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, andNew York Presbyterian Hospital.[22] She serves on the advisory board for the Institute of Protein Design at theUniversity of Washington.[23] She is also on the REFORM Alliance board.[24]
Wu Tsai and her husband started a foundation, the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation. Wu Tsai leads and manages the foundation's work in supporting scientific research, economic mobility, social justice, and creativity in the arts.[10][11] TheStanford University neuroscience institute is named after Wu Tsai.[11]
In 2018, Stanford University announced a gift from the Tsais, in support of the Stanford Neurosciences Institute, as part of a $250 million campaign.[25]
In August 2020, in the wake of theGeorge Floyd protests, Wu Tsai and her husband launched the Social Justice Fund inBrooklyn with a $50 million commitment.[1][26] The fund invests in programs that address the root causes of the borough's racial disparities in education, health, and wealth. Initiatives included BK-XL, a tech accelerator focused on founders in theblack, indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) communities; the EXCELerate Loan Fund, which provideslow-interest loans to BIPOC business owners; and Basquiat in Brooklyn Schools, an educational arts program about Brooklyn-born artistJean-Michel Basquiat in partnership with theNew York City Department of Education.[27][28]
Wu Tsai and her husband donated toYale University to create the Wu Tsai Institute, which is set to open in the fall of 2022.[10] The Institute will have three centers: the Center for Neurodevelopment and Plasticity, the Center for Neurocognition and Behavior, and the Center for Neurocomputation and Machine Intelligence.[29][5][10]
In March 2021, the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation also donated to theUniversity of California, San Diego’s 21st Century China Center to expand its data-based research, policy engagement, and education on issues related toU.S.-China relations.[2]
In July 2021, the Tsais pledged $220 million to create the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance, a consortium of experts and academics from Stanford University, theUniversity of Kansas, theUniversity of Oregon, the University of California, San Diego,Boston Children's Hospital, and theSalk Institute for Biological Studies.[30]
In July 2021, the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation funded aJean-Michel Basquiat educational arts program developed in partnership between theBrooklyn Nets, theNew York City Department of Education and the Fund for Public Schools, with an exhibit hosted in August 2021.[31]
In 2022, the Tsais donated $50 million to the renovation of Lincoln Center’sDavid Geffen Hall, home of theNew York Philharmonic. The hall reopened in October 2022, with the theater where the Philharmonic performs renamed as the Wu Tsai Theater. As part of the gift, Lincoln Center and the Philharmonic programmed an annual “Wu Tsai Series” featuring performances meant to reach new audiences and celebrate diverse artists.[32]
In February 2021, Wu Tsai was named "Champion of Justice" byJohn Jay College for her role in creating and forming REFORM Alliance.[5] The award also recognized her $50 million donation to create the Social Justice Fund for Brooklyn's Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.[5] In 2022, Wu Tsai and her husband received theJacqueline Kennedy Onassis Medal from theMunicipal Art Society.[33] In May 2023, Wu Tsai was honored by theGordan Parks Foundation.[34]
In February 2024, Wu Tsai was presented with the Dreamer Award during the first-quarter break of a game between the Nets and theBoston Celtics. The award, which honors those who "embody"Martin Luther King Jr.'s "vision of service," was given by King Jr.'s family membersMartin Luther King III and Andrea Waters King, via theirRealizing the Dream organization.[35]
Wu Tsai married businessmanJoseph Tsai atPark Avenue Christian Church on October 4, 1996.[1][4] They have three children.[11]
Wu Tsai has a residence inLa Jolla, California.[2][11]