Billionaire Who Sprayed $1 Million at US University Graduation Says "It's Okay to Fail"

Billionaire Businessman Robert Hale
Visits Dartmouth College Commencement in Massachusetts, USA
Has Given Cash Gifts for 4 Years... Half Encourages Donations

An American billionaire philanthropist made headlines by gifting $1,000 (about 1.36 million KRW) in cash to each graduate at a university commencement ceremony.

Robert Hale explaining donations at Dartmouth College graduation ceremony
Photo by Yonhap News

According to Yonhap News on the 21st (local time), citing an AP report, philanthropist Robert Hale gave bundles of cash to graduates at the Dartmouth College commencement ceremony held on the 16th in Massachusetts, USA. Hale gifted $1,000 to each of the approximately 1,000 graduates that day.

He began the tradition of giving cash gifts to graduates four years ago. In an interview with AP, he said, "I started this donation during the COVID-19 pandemic when students had very few reasons to celebrate," adding, "I wanted to convey that it’s okay to take risks and fail in life."

Hale encourages students to use half of the $1,000 gift, $500 (about 680,000 KRW), for themselves and to donate the remaining $500 to others. At the commencement, he said, "We want to give you two gifts: one is the gift we give, and the other is the gift of giving."

He added, "In difficult times like these, the need for sharing, caring, and donating is greater, and our community needs your generosity more than ever." While acknowledging that he cannot force students to donate, he said, "I believe most people do the right thing and feel joy from it."

Hale also shared life advice with the students, mentioning the hardships he faced before succeeding, including the bankruptcy of his company during the 2002 dot-com crash. He said, "I might be the biggest 'loser' you have ever met," delivering a message to have resilience and patience and not to fear adventure and failure.

Robert Hale is known as the founder of Granite Telecommunications and holds shares in the NBA’s Boston Celtics. Forbes estimates Robert Hale’s net worth at $5.4 billion (about 7.36 trillion KRW).

Having gifted cash to graduates for four consecutive years, Hale has also given money to graduates of Boston University, Roxbury Community College, and Quincy College in Massachusetts, in addition to Dartmouth College. It is reported that he plans to donate even more next year, though which university commencement he will attend remains unknown.