After 12 years as a host on Shark Tank, Mark Cuban said he’s ready to move on.
Cuban said last week that “it’s time” for him to leave the investor-pitch show after the conclusion of next year’s season in May 2025. At first, he didn’t give a reason for his departure, but according to CNBC, Cuban is leaving to spend more time with his kids before they head off to college.
Cuban is still jazzed about Shark Tank and giving startups a shot, as he discussed on All The Smoke, a Showtime podcast.
“I love it because it sends the message the American dream is alive and well,” said Cuban according to Huffington Post. “I feel like in doing Shark Tank all these years, we’ve trained multiple generations of entrepreneurs that if somebody can come from Iowa or Sacramento or wherever, and show up on the carpet of Shark Tank and show their business and get a deal, that’s going to inspire generations of kids. That’s what happens, right?
The show, which will hit 16 seasons by the time Cuban leaves, has been a hit on ABC, with short clips routinely popping up on TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and other social media platforms. While Shark Tank has made celebrities out of the other investors, the Dallas Mavericks owner was the highest profile Shark, having established his name long before the show.
In 2011, Cuban joined Shark Tank as a guest in the second season before joining the investor panel full-time in the third. He’s invested $19.85 million in 85 deals with startup companies like Ten Thirty One Productions and the Rugged Maniac Obstacle Race, according to Sharkalytics.
ABC did not respond to a request for comment.
Cuban has been shaking up a couple of his business endeavors as of late. In November he entered a potential $3.5 billion deal to sell a majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks to Miriam Adelson, owner of the Las Vegas Sands casino. On November 28, Adelson planned to sell $2 billion of her shares to buy an “unspecified professional sports team,” according to NBA. The agreement is expected to be finalized by the end of this year, pending approval from the NBA Board of Governors, as confirmed by Tim MacMahon on X.
As to what Cuban plans to do next, running for president as a third-party candidate did not make his list, as he told NBC News in November, squelching rumors to the contrary.
“My family would disown me,” said Cuban.
Image credit: NBC