He’s spoken repeatedly about his need to earn a living, and on Wednesday night Prince Harry was doing just that: sitting down for a live-streamed chat to promote one of his contracts.
The 39-year-old spoke to the CEO of online coaching firm BetterUp, Alexi Robichaux, at the conclusion of a gathering of HR professionals coordinated by the firm.
Harry was hired as Chief Impact Officer of the San Francisco-based start-up in March 2021, for an undisclosed sum.
And on Wednesday he was diligently promoting the brand, telling Robichaux he offered BetterUp’s services to all his employees at his own company Archewell, and adding: ‘I’ve seen first hand what coaching can do.’
Harry carefully steered clear of any contentious topics, delivering vanilla answers during a 30-minute session which would have left his press advisors heaving a sigh of relief.
There’s likely to be few personal revelations left after his explosive memoir Spare, which touched on royal family feuds, Harry’s cocaine use – and even the loss of his virginity to an older woman.
Prince Harry on Wednesday evening took part in a live-streamed discussion with the founder of coaching firm BetterUp, which appointed him Chief Impact Officer in March 2021
Harry talked to Alexi Robichaux, who co-founded the firm in 2013
Perhaps the most remarkable note was sounded by the emcees and comperes, who performed a cringey rap before the prince and Robichaux came onto the stage, musing over the price of eggs.
One member of the warmup act invited a woman onto the stage, and – asking her for her preferred pronouns first – invited her to recount her day at the convention.
Harry and Robichaux then entered the stage – both men in jeans and suit jackets.
‘Alexis is going to start with a rap,’ joked Harry.
Audience members had been invited to submit questions in writing, and the pair then embarked on a self-congratulatory discussion of the company.
Rappers took to the stage to entertain the audience of HR professionals before the prince and Robichaux appeared
Robichaux is seen welcoming Harry to the stage
Robichaux was asked why he had hired the prince.
He said he and his co-founder, Eddie Medina, asked themselves a key question.
‘Who are luminaries in the world, who are leaders, who are talking about this – and it was a very, very short list,’ Robichaux said.
‘In fact it was one person.’
Robichaux told Harry: ‘It was a dream come true to be able to work with you.’
The prince was a little less gushing when asked why he had begun working with BetterUp, replying: ‘Because that’s all I was offered.’
Laughing, he then said he appreciated BetterUp’s focus on both doing good, and creating profit.
Asked what role coaching had played in his life, Harry did not mention the immense family trauma he has recently revealed in his memoir, Spare, and instead said it was his time in the military that showed the power of coaching.
‘I promise you we don’t shout at you, though,’ he said. ‘Unless that’s what you asked for.’
Harry answered questions which had been submitted in writing by attendees
The 38-year-old steered clear of contentious topics in his 30-minute chat
He made a brief reference to ‘my wife’, but did not expand.
Asked about holding the event on International Women’s Day, Harry praised the women in his life – and appeared to make a slight swipe at his father, King Charles, and brother Prince William, who he rounded on in his book.
‘I’ve been lucky enough to be surrounded by strong, empowered, confident women all my life,’ he said.
‘I wish that more women would have higher leadership roles. Less testosterone in the room – which I think would be a good thing.’
He also referenced his children – Archie, three, and Lilibet, who turns two in June.
‘Kids ground you,’ said Harry.
‘The longer you’ve been around, the more filters you have in life.’
The pair joked through the remainder of the session – a dialogue filled with Silicon Valley buzz-words, with Robichaux at one point announcing he wanted to ‘plus one thing you said.’
A baffled Harry asked: ‘Pus?!’
Robichaux replied: ‘Plus. Add to it, and make it a bit better.’
Robichaux urged those in the room to ‘reimagine work as a playscape’, and ‘inspire awe in your workforce’.
Harry added: ‘For me, personally, I get so much out of helping other people.
‘It’s what gets me out of bed every morning.’
It is not Harry’s first foray promoting the brand.
In February 2022, he sat down with Robichaux and Serena Williams to discuss the company in another live-streamed event.
And in July 2022, he interviewed three different people for a short film – including two-time Olympic gold medal-winning snowboarder Chloe Kim – about their own mental health practices, while promoting the company’s online life coaching services.
‘We all have greatness within us,’ the father-of-two says at the start of the five-minute film.
‘Mental fitness helps us unlock it. It’s an ongoing practice, one where you approach your mind as something to flex, not fix.’