Jessica Alba will mentor devs on Apple’s Planet of the Apps show

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planet of the apes with tim cook
You could be the star of Apple's first reality TV show.
Photo: Twentieth Century Fox/Apple

Apple has added movie star turned business woman Jessica Alba to the cast of its first unscripted TV Series, Planet of the Apps, and just like her future co-hosts Will.i.Am and Gwyneth Paltrow, she’ll use her nonexistent coding skills to “mentor” developers.

Jessica Alba is perhaps the most successful business person among the roster of mentors that also includes serial entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk. The actress founded The Honest Company in 2012 selling organic baby products. In the most recent funding round she raised $100 million off a $1.7 billion valuation.

“I started The Honest Company because I saw an opportunity in the market for a brand that spoke to conscious consumers and created safe and effective products for every need,” Alba said in a statement. “As a mentor on Planet of the Apps, I’m looking forward to meeting entrepreneurs looking to address a problem with an innovative solution, and to help them realize their vision. I can’t wait to see the ideas the app developers bring to the table.”

It’s still not clear what the format for Planet of the Apps will be, though it sounds like it will be some mix between Shark Tank and The Biggest Loser. Apple put out a casting call looking for up to 100 developers with a great app idea.

Lightspeed Venture Partners is also joining the Planet of the Apps project and will offer up to $10 million in funding to contestants. The VC firm was one of the first to invest in Snapchat as well as Alba’s The Honest Company.

Signing Alba to the show actually makes more sense that failed tech visionary Will.i.Am and Gwyneth Platrow, but if Apple is going use celebrities who parlayed their fame into business, they should just get Kim Kardashian. At least she has experience dominating the App Store.

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