"He was on United Flight 93" — Remento founder Charlie opens up about losing his father during 9/11 in Shark Tank

Shark Tank season 16 aired episode 12 this week on March 7, 2025, on ABC. The segment introduced several business ideas, including Remento, while Daniel Lubetzky appeared as a guest judge.

Charlie Greene, the CEO and founder of Remento, pitched his business to the sharks. He said that the stories of parents and grandparents live across generations, but when loved ones passed away, those stories were lost with them.

He said that Remento had built the "easiest" way to keep those stories alive by using speech-to-text technology to turn a parent or a grandparent's memory into a "keepsake book for the future." The sharks showed interest in the product and were curious to find out more about Charlie's past. Daniel asked him how he became such a great presenter and where his idea stemmed from.

He told the Shark Tank season 16 investors the idea stemmed from personal experience. Charlie revealed he lost his father a few days after his 10th birthday on September 11, in 2001.

"He was on United Flight 93, which was headed to the nation's capital but ended up crashing in a field in Pennsylvania," Charlie said.

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"He would be so proud" — Daniel Lubetzky gets emotional by Charlie's story in Shark Tank season 16 episode 12

In Shark Tank season 16 episode 12, Remento's founder Charlie Greene opened up about losing his father on September 11, 2001. Kevin O'Leary called the entrepreneur's father an American Hero and said that he was a part of the county's history.

Charlie further told the Shark Tank season 12 investors that in the years following his father's death, he thought a lot about his legacy and how he would be remembered.

"He would be so proud of you, just to see you stand with such presence and such strength, and such beauty. I'm sure he is, and I'm sure he's very proud of you," Daniel told Charlie.

Charlie told the sharks he was going to "try to get this out" as he teared up as well. He said in the period after 2001, he spent a lot of time thinking about how his father would be remembered in memorials and museums across the country. He recalled realizing when he was a young kid that there were so many questions he couldn't ask his late father.

Daniel wasn't the only cast member who had an emotional reaction to Charlie's story. As the cameras panned across the room, Kevin, Mark and Barbara were all teary eyed.

Charlie further revealed his mother was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer a few years later. He said that he knew he couldn't miss the opportunity to ask her the questions he never had a chance to ask his father. The Shark Tank investors asked what happened to his mother and the Remento founder said that she was in "full remission."

Daniel asked Charlie what his deal was and praised his presentation. He said that he could be President Obama and said his presentation was "flawless." The guest shark asked about his background and Charlie said he moved to Washington D.C. after his undergraduate degree and started his career in journalism.

"I then became a speechwriter in the Obama administration and then, I worked at 21st Century Fox for a while, got my MBA and then started Remento," Charlie said.

The entrepreneur had come on Shark Tank season 16 seeking a $300,000 investment for 5% equity in his company. After the presentation, Kevin told him he would be asking for 15%-20% equity and Daniel noted that he had written down the same numbers.

While Barbara and Lori were out of the race, Mark Cuban made a counter offer. He said he was willing to invest "$300k for 10%." Charlie asked the shark if he was open to splitting the equity between advisory sharks.

"Oh yeah, I don't give a f*ck about that," Mark said.

The two shook on it and Mark told him he loved the concept. The sharks congratulated the entrepreneurs while Charlie thanked them for inspiring him.

Episodes of Shark Tank season 16 are available to stream on ABC.