Cerebral Success has no verified current net worth. The brain supplement company’s best documented valuation comes from its 2014 Shark Tank appearance: founder Trevor Hiltbrand asked for $75,000 in exchange for 20% of the business, implying a $375,000 valuation. He accepted Barbara Corcoran’s offer of $75,000 for 40%, implying a $187,500 post-investment valuation on those terms. These figures describe a pitch and a deal more than a decade ago. Neither establishes what the company—or Hiltbrand personally—is worth today. Shark Tank Season 5
What was Cerebral Success?
Cerebral Success was a Provo, Utah, company founded by Trevor Hiltbrand. It sold a dietary supplement promoted to people seeking help with focus, memory, and mental energy, particularly students. In an October 2014 company announcement, Cerebral Success said Hiltbrand had established the business in 2011. Its product later carried the name SmartX. These descriptions reflect how the company marketed the supplement; they are not proof that it delivered the advertised results. prweb.com
Hiltbrand’s Shark Tank appearance put the young business before a national audience. The pitch also raised a question that would matter beyond television: how much evidence supported the supplement’s performance claims? The company’s story includes an investor deal, a move into retail stores, and an advertising review. Looking at all three gives a clearer picture than treating the on-air valuation as a current financial statement.
How much was Cerebral Success valued at on Shark Tank?
Hiltbrand sought $75,000 for 20% of Cerebral Success. Divide the requested investment by the proposed ownership stake—$75,000 ÷ 0.20—and the implied value of the whole company is $375,000. That was the valuation suggested by his opening offer, not an independent appraisal of its assets or profits. A contemporaneous pitch account maintained by Shark Tank Blog records both the ask and the eventual offer. Shark Tank Season 5
Barbara Corcoran offered the same $75,000 for a larger stake: 40%. Hiltbrand accepted. A 2026 account drawing on a Brigham Young University Technology Transfer Office list independently identifies Hiltbrand, Corcoran, and those deal terms. Cerebral Success’s own later announcement said Corcoran invested in the company. Philanthropies
At $75,000 for 40%, the implied value of 100% after the investment is $187,500. Subtracting the $75,000 investment gives an implied pre-investment valuation of $112,500. This calculation helps explain how much ownership Hiltbrand agreed to give up for the money. It does not show that the business had $187,500 in cash, that Corcoran made a profit, or that Hiltbrand’s personal net worth equaled his remaining stake.
| 2014 deal figure | Amount |
|---|---|
| Hiltbrand’s requested investment | $75,000 for 20% |
| Valuation implied by his request | $375,000 |
| Corcoran’s accepted deal | $75,000 for 40% |
| Post-investment valuation implied by that deal | $187,500 |
| Pre-investment valuation implied by that deal | $112,500 |
The calculation assumes a straightforward cash-for-equity transaction. It is a way to interpret the reported terms, not a present-day estimate.
Why did Corcoran’s offer change the valuation?
The decisive difference was ownership. Corcoran offered the amount Hiltbrand wanted, but requested twice the equity he initially proposed. Accepting meant exchanging a larger portion of the business for the investment and the opportunity to work with her.
According to Shark Tank Blog’s account of the pitch, other investors questioned the evidence for the product’s claims, and Corcoran’s offer included a condition concerning her liability. The account says Hiltbrand tried to negotiate the stake to 37%, but accepted 40% when she held to her terms. Those details help explain the on-air negotiation. They should not be turned into an unsupported claim about exactly how either party calculated the company’s value. Shark Tank Season 5
What happened after the show?
The business announced a significant distribution step later in 2014. In its October press release, Cerebral Success said SmartX was entering GNC stores and credited Corcoran’s mentorship with helping it reach that point. The release described this as the product’s first move into traditional retail; it had previously been sold online. An April 2015 announcement from an ingredient supplier also described SmartX’s distribution through GNC and online retailers. These are useful records of what the companies announced, though neither supplies audited sales or profit figures. prweb.com
The supplement’s advertising faced scrutiny as well. In September 2014, the National Advertising Division, an advertising self-regulatory body, recommended that Cerebral Success discontinue a range of SmartX performance claims. It said the studies the advertiser submitted concerned individual ingredients and did not test SmartX or a sufficiently similar combination. The division found a reasonable basis for some narrower ingredient claims, while recommending that others also be discontinued. Cerebral Success said it disagreed with aspects of the decision but would consider the recommendations and alter its advertising. bbbprograms.org
That decision matters when interpreting the company’s later promotional material. An announced retail launch is evidence of distribution, and a company-reported study result is a claim about a study. Neither, by itself, verifies the product’s advertised benefits or tells readers how profitable the business became.
Is Cerebral Success still in business, and what is it worth now?
Shark Tank Blog reports that Hiltbrand closed Cerebral Success in October 2019. Publicly available records reviewed for this article did not establish the precise closure date through a company filing or a direct statement from Hiltbrand, so that date should be treated as reported, rather than independently confirmed. The available sources also do not document a later sale price, current ownership structure, financial statements, or a new investment round from which to calculate a present valuation. Shark Tank Season 5
Hiltbrand’s later career should not be mistaken for evidence of Cerebral Success’s value. In a June 2019 AdExchanger report, he was identified as CEO of a different supplement company, Transparent Labs. That reporting establishes a later professional role; it does not disclose his personal wealth or the financial outcome of his Cerebral Success stake. AdExchanger
A claim that Cerebral Success is now worth $0, or any other exact sum, would go further than the financial evidence allows. A business can stop selling a product without a public accounting of its remaining assets, debts, intellectual property, or ownership interests. The defensible answer to the net worth question is therefore a historical deal valuation and no verified current figure.
Frequently asked questions
Did Cerebral Success get a deal on Shark Tank?
Yes. Trevor Hiltbrand accepted Barbara Corcoran’s offer of $75,000 for 40% of Cerebral Success. The company later described Corcoran as an investor. Philanthropies
Was Cerebral Success worth $375,000?
$375,000 was the valuation implied by Hiltbrand’s initial request for $75,000 in exchange for 20%. The accepted $75,000-for-40% terms imply a lower post-investment valuation of $187,500. Neither is a current valuation. Shark Tank Season 5
What was SmartX?
SmartX was the name used for Cerebral Success’s dietary supplement after its Shark Tank appearance. The company marketed it for focus, memory, and mental energy; the National Advertising Division later recommended discontinuing several of its performance claims. Philanthropies
What is Trevor Hiltbrand’s net worth?
No reliable public figure was verified for Hiltbrand’s personal net worth. Cerebral Success’s television deal terms cannot establish it: personal net worth would require information about his assets and liabilities beyond this one business.
Conclusion
Cerebral Success’s clearest financial milestone is its 2014 $75,000-for-40% deal with Barbara Corcoran, which implies a $187,500 post-investment valuation on the reported terms. The company subsequently announced a SmartX retail expansion, while its advertising claims drew scrutiny. Reports of its later closure do not provide the financial records needed to calculate a current company or founder net worth. Philanthropies