Detroit billionaire Dan Gilbert is using his family office to preserve his empire—and transform a city

Campus Martius, the public square at the heart of downtown Detroit, is typically reserved for meandering pedestrians or skaters making the most of its winter ice rink. But it was filled to bursting last spring, when some 750,000 football fans from over 30 cities poured into the city for the 2024 NFL Draft. Locals basked in the success of the event, hoping it would burnish Detroit’s image among visitors and national TV viewers alike.

Taking in the spectacle from his ninth-floor office, Dan Gilbert was among those cheering loudest. The billionaire cofounder and chairman of Rocket Mortgage had helped clinch the event with a personal phone call to his friend NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, and seeing it unfold felt like the culmination of a dream.