Is Silicon Valley becoming a bastion of the right?
Since Donald Trump chose J.D. Vance, a former startup investor and current crypto enthusiast, as his "running mate," Silicon Valley has been rejoicing. Is the tech industry shifting to the right? And what role does Peter Thiel play? Historian Margaret O'Mara provides context.
Capital: Donald Trump recently chose J.D. Vance as his vice-presidential candidate. How significant was this move for Silicon Valley?
Margaret O'Mara: For the part of Silicon Valley connected to Vance and supporting him, this was great news. Vance's career, both professionally and politically, is largely due to Peter Thiel's support...
... the libertarian investor and PayPal co-founder.
Exactly. The role of vice president comes with varying levels of influence. For example, Al Gore had a lot to do with Bill Clinton and maintained close connections with Silicon Valley. But that's not always the case.
In recent times, it seemed that Silicon Valley was shifting politically to the right. Is that true?
Thiel and his allies like Elon Musk don't even live in the Valley anymore. Meanwhile, it's still predominantly Democrats who are elected and receive donations there.
Thiel, Musk, and co. were once seen as representatives of a libertarian mindset. Have they shifted to the right?
No. Thiel and his allies like early PayPal manager David Sacks have consistently pursued their political line. They now have more visibility, more money, and there's a willingness to speak openly about it. They've always been against the bureaucratic liberalism that the Democratic Party represents and against what was once called political correctness and now wokeness.
Meanwhile, influential investors like Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz have actually done a U-turn - they used to support Democrats.
That's true. They represent a larger trend. In recent years, the relationship between Washington and the tech industry has changed. During Obama's time, there was uncritical support for Silicon Valley, regardless of what the companies there did. Now, both Democrats and Republicans are criticizing tech giants more, and there are stronger regulatory and anti-monopoly efforts. This isn't well-received in the Valley. For Andreessen and Horowitz, who make money from startup investments, this atmosphere is dangerous - it goes against their business interests and their techno-libertarian worldview.
Andreessen and Horowitz say they're not advocating for Big Tech, but for "Little Tech" - young startups.
Well, Marc Andreessen is still on Meta's board of directors. These men have amassed enormous wealth with Big Tech.
A topic many tech representatives bring up is the regulation of cryptocurrencies. Why is that so important?
For me, that's part of a new tech populism. It's suggested that with Bitcoin and others, the little guy can bypass big banks. Interestingly, it's mainly young men involved in this. That's also connected to the fight against what Musk calls the "Woke Mind Virus." Here, a sentiment among white men frustrated by a perceived unhealthy fixation on diversity and inclusion is tapped into.
Peter Thiel seems to be the mastermind behind the conservative tech revolution. What do we know about his worldview?
Thiel, as mentioned before, was never a pure libertarian in the vein of a Barry Goldwater or Ron Paul. Looking back at his speech at the 2016 Republican convention, one finds a remarkably nostalgic view of the Sputnik era and the space race - despite the significant government interventions in the market at the time. Thiel believes we need to refocus on such large projects, on "moonshots," instead of getting distracted by questions of diversity or inclusion.
But there are even more radical ideas among the Thielists, aren't there?
There is a frustration with democratic processes and administrative bureaucracy. Ideas like a modern monarchy are being floated. These are anti-democratic nationalists, and they're saying it openly.
What are they planning?
The Thielists have a complete assault on bureaucracy in mind, to tear it down or repurpose it for entirely different purposes. And there seems to be even more determination and focus for this endeavor than in 2016. Trump's most extreme instincts regarding power grabs and long-term system changes are being encouraged.
Back to Vance - will he go along with all this as some kind of willing enforcer for the Thielists?
That remains to be seen. When influential and wealthy entrepreneurs back and install someone, they don't always get exactly what they want. There will be conflicting loyalties. And J.D. Vance is an interesting figure: he's already had a long ideological journey. I can't imagine it ending here.
Margaret O'Mara spoke with Niklas Wirminghaus
This interview first appeared on capital.de
Vance's political alignment with Peter Thiel, a key figure in his career, could further strengthen the tech industry's perceived shift towards the right. Thiel and his allies, including Elon Musk, have maintained their libertarian political stance despite living outside of Silicon Valley.
