Shark Tank investor smashing a blue INVEST button with motion blur

Invest Button

2017reaction imageclassic

Published November 13, 2026

Invest Button is a reaction image showing Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec next to a blue 'INVEST' button, adapted from the earlier Nut Button template. Redditor BaldBeard76 uploaded the earliest known version to the r/MemeEconomy subreddit on April 6, 2017. By July 2020, a GIF variant on r/dankmemes topped 84,000 upvotes as users deployed the format to react to absurd hypothetical products.

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Overview

An Invest Button post pairs an above image or tweet, usually about an unlikely product or business pitch, with the button beneath as a wordless punchline2. Two headshots of Herjavec flank the central button in a double-exposure style borrowed from Nut Button, the earlier blue Dave & Buster's gag-button reaction1. The implication is that the user would smack the button to fund whatever pitch appeared above, playing on Shark Tank's premise of investors reacting to business ideas live.

Variations swap in different Herjavec expressions or loop him slapping the button as a GIF5. The image typically works as a reply, so the humor depends on what the user is reacting to4. When attached to over-the-top business pitches, the deadpan 'INVEST' graphic lands as a mock enthusiastic response.

Origin & Background

Platform
Reddit (r/MemeEconomy)
Date
2017

Redditor BaldBeard76 uploaded the earliest known Invest Button edit to the r/MemeEconomy subreddit on April 6, 2017, where it collected close to 300 upvotes1. BaldBeard76 adapted the Nut Button template by swapping 'NUT' for 'INVEST' and inserting two Shark Tank stills of Herjavec on either side of the button2. The subreddit, which runs on the bit of trading memes as speculative assets, was a fitting launchpad for a format about investing.

How It Spread

Three months later, Twitter user dwfzx shared the reaction image on July 12, 2017, drawing over 2,400 likes and 1,100 retweets3. Usage on Twitter stayed sporadic until April 17, 2019, when user BertieBanz used it as a blank reply to a tweet reading 'lunch cabinet,' showing how the image worked as a wordless reaction without any explanatory text4.

A larger resurgence hit in July 2020. On July 9, Redditor Ema005 posted a GIF version to r/dankmemes that passed 84,100 upvotes and 523 comments5. The following day, Redditor IGTENDENCY shared another variant on r/memes that collected more than 52,600 upvotes6. That same week, the Facebook page Memes uploaded a widely shared edit with over 139,000 likes and 88,000 shares7.

Timeline

2017-04-06

Redditor BaldBeard76 posts the earliest known Invest Button edit to r/MemeEconomy, where it collects close to 300 upvotes.

2017-07-12

Twitter user dwfzx shares the reaction image, drawing over 2,400 likes and 1,100 retweets.

2019-04-17

Twitter user BertieBanz uses the image as a blank reply to a tweet reading 'lunch cabinet.'

2020-07-09

Redditor Ema005 posts a GIF version to r/dankmemes that passes 84,100 upvotes.

2020-07-09

Facebook page Memes uploads a version that gathers over 139,000 likes and 88,000 shares.

2020-07-10

Redditor IGTENDENCY posts another variant to r/memes, collecting more than 52,600 upvotes.

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How to Use This Meme

To make an Invest Button post, place content worth reacting to on top, usually an image or screenshot about an absurd product, then put the INVEST button with Herjavec below it as the punchline1. Posts typically appear as replies, not standalone uploads4. GIF versions loop Herjavec slamming the button for added emphasis5.

Frequently Asked Questions