David Blitzer
About David Blitzer
David Blitzer was born in 1969 in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, and studied at the University of Pennsylvania. He has worked at Blackstone since 1991. He is Senior Managing Director and Global Head of its Tactical Opportunities group, Blackstone's opportunistic investment business, and he leads that group's investment committee.
He is also a co-founder of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE) and its managing partner. HBSE owns the New Jersey Devils, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Prudential Center. It also runs a sports-tech venture arm, HBSE Ventures. Wikipedia describes him as the first person to own team equity in all five major U.S. leagues (NBA, NHL, NFL, MLS, MLB). He also has a stake in Crystal Palace in the English Premier League.
PitchBook lists David Blitzer as an angel investor with 27 investments. Crunchbase's Blitzer profile lists 15 personal investments, many of them sports and media companies. These include Premier Lacrosse League (Series E), Jackpocket (Series C), OpenSponsorship (seed, where Crunchbase lists him as a lead investor) and Just Women's Sports (seed). Crunchbase also reports a Major League Table Tennis round with Daryl Morey. Round dates are not shown on the public pages we found.
The AI deal on Lounge's desk is Authors First, a book-to-screen studio and distribution platform. It came out of stealth in October 2026 with a seed round of more than $10 million. Brand Foundry and founder Robert Hamwee led the round. The press release names Bolt Ventures, the family office of David Blitzer, among the participants, along with other angels. Authors First pairs human authors with AI-enabled production tools.
Crunchbase also lists Sportsbox AI, a seed-stage company, among his investments. PitchBook shows an exit date of April 2026 for Sportsbox AI.
The public record shows seed-stage and later rounds, mostly in sports, sports technology, media and entertainment, and consumer products. Authors First is a seed investment that sits between media and AI. His investments appear to run through Bolt Ventures, and through HBSE and Blackstone for his other activity. We found no public statement from him about check size or what he looks for in founders.
- Authors First: AI-enabled book-to-screen studio; participated in the seed round announced October 2026, through Bolt Ventures.
- Sportsbox AI: seed investment listed on Crunchbase; year not public in the sources we found.
- OpenSponsorship: sports sponsorship platform; seed round on Crunchbase.
- Just Women's Sports: seed round on Crunchbase.
- Jackpocket: Series C on Crunchbase.
- Premier Lacrosse League: Series E on Crunchbase.
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Blitzer
- hbse.com/our-team/david-blitzer
- crunchbase.com/person/david-blitzer
- pitchbook.com/profiles/investor/113097-16
- streetinsider.com/Business+Wire/Authors+First+Launches+With+%2410M+To+
- c21media.net/news/ai-enabled-book-to-screen-studio-and-distribution-pl
- crunchbase.com/funding_round/opensponsorship-seed--063f3121
- sporticolive.com/InvestInSports/speaker/493274/david-blitzer
Investing activity
David Blitzer appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $10M. The most recent is Authors First (Seed, $10M, Oct 2026).
David Blitzer most often invests alongside Mike Duggal, Brand Foundry, Andy Mills and Robert Hamwee, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about David Blitzer
Does David Blitzer invest in AI startups?
Yes. Bolt Ventures, his family office, took part in the Authors First seed round of more than $10 million in October 2026. Crunchbase also lists a seed investment in Sportsbox AI.
What is David Blitzer's typical angel check size?
It is not public. We found no stated check size, and Authors First's press release gives only the total round size.
What stage does David Blitzer invest in?
Public records show seed rounds, such as Authors First, OpenSponsorship and Just Women's Sports. They also show later rounds such as Jackpocket Series C and Premier Lacrosse League Series E.
What sectors does David Blitzer back?
His listed investments are mostly in sports, sports tech, media and consumer businesses. His AI exposure so far is AI-enabled media (Authors First) and sports AI (Sportsbox AI).
Who is David Blitzer?
He is Global Head of Tactical Opportunities at Blackstone, where he has worked since 1991. He also co-founded Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which owns the New Jersey Devils and the Philadelphia 76ers.
How can founders reach David Blitzer?
He has a LinkedIn profile, and the HBSE site has a team page for him. We found no personal website or X account, and no public pitch process.
Is David Blitzer an angel investor?
Yes. David Blitzer invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has David Blitzer invested in?
David Blitzer's AI investments include Authors First. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does David Blitzer invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, David Blitzer has invested at Seed, with a median round of $10M.
Who does David Blitzer co-invest with?
David Blitzer's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Mike Duggal (1 deal), Brand Foundry (1 deal), Andy Mills (1 deal), Robert Hamwee (1 deal) and John Kline (1 deal).