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Renowned tech venture capitalists including Marc Andreessen and Chamath Palihapitiya are ramping up their criticisms of President Joe Biden amid the critical election year, with many now endorsing former President Donald Trump, as reported by The New York Times.
Distaste for Biden arises from his disdain for the rich and his suggested 45% capital gains tax coupled with a 25% “billionaire tax”.
Bradley Tusk, a venture capitalist and political strategist who supports Biden at the moment, suggests that more from his arena will lean right if they continue to be vilified.
Tusk observes this shift in the venture capital industry.
Investor David Sacks outspokenly states that his disagreements with Biden outweigh those with Trump.
Numerous top venture capitalists, including Shaun Maguire of Sequoia Capital, voice their grievances about Biden, albeit without explicitly supporting Trump.
Another section, including Keith Rabois of Khosla Ventures, is focusing their efforts on winning more Congressional seats for the Republicans.
Sacks, who initially criticized Trump post the January 6, 2021 uprising, is now actively raising funds for him.
Sacks and other venture capitalists supporting Trump – who have considerable social media following and unlimited funds – are significantly more politically active as start-up financing skyrockets year on year.
With the venture capital funding amassing to $344 billion in 2022, an eightfold increase in a decade, as per PitchBook’s data.
The landscape has significantly changed since he started, says Bobby Franklin, who has headed the National Venture Capital Association group since 2013. Tax and immigration issues were once the primary concerns, now it’s much more multilayered.
Delian Asparouhov, a Founders Fund investor, recently posted on the rising support for Trump, stating how different the scenario is now compared to four years back, when voting for Trump required subsequent apologies.
Peter Thiel, who plans to skip the 2024 presidential election, openly and enthusiastically backed Trump in 2016; contributing $1.25 million to his campaign and delivering a keynote speech at the Republican National Convention.
Silicon Valley’s Trump supporters are disheartened by Biden’s choice, Lina Khan, for the Federal Trade Commission chairman due to her stance on antitrust. This is crucial as mergers and acquisitions significantly contribute to the venture capital revenue.
Elevated interest rates resulting from the Federal Reserve’s 11 rate hikes have driven capital away from risky ventures and IPOs, leading to a slump in the start-up industry since 2022.
Higher taxes proposed by Biden may hinder the industry from offering stock options to founders and employees, a concern shared by venture capitalists.
The policies give Silicon Valley a reason to reconsider their choices during voting, as opines Sacks.
Several other venture capitalists express dissatisfaction with Biden’s take on the Israel-Gaza war.
Rabois is adamant that supporting Biden is out of the question, and states his focus on electing a GOP Congress and Senate.
Last November, prominent investors publicized an open letter to Biden, criticizing his executive order proposing precautions around artificial intelligence, which they believe would curb innovation.
Venture capitalists are siding with lobbyists to combat AI regulations. Jacob Helberg, a lobbyist and technology company Palantir’s adviser, personally donated $1 million to Trump’s campaign this month.
The industry wishes to support a candidate who can facilitate a hopeful, technology-facilitated future as expressed by Ben Horowitz, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz, in his blog post last year.
The odds seemingly favor billionaire real estate magnate Trump to take up this responsibility.
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