On July 4th, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, as soon as a distinguished Democratic donor, declared himself “politically homeless.”
Whereas Altman cited his private disillusionment with political events, his feedback are emblematic of a broader realignment underneath manner in Silicon Valley—a area as soon as synonymous with progressive politics, now witnessing a high-profile migration of its elite towards the political proper.
“I’m not big on identities, but I am extremely proud to be American,” Altman wrote in a submit on X. “This is true every day, but especially today—I firmly believe this is the greatest country ever on Earth. The American miracle stands alone in world history.”
It was a pointed critique of the Democratic Occasion’s perceived drift away from innovation and entrepreneurship, as Altman explicitly known as for a renewed concentrate on what he known as “techno-capitalism”—a philosophy that champions each wealth creation and broad-based prosperity by innovation.
Silicon Valley’s political shift
Altman’s public break with the Democrats shouldn’t be an remoted occasion. It comes at a time when Silicon Valley’s political allegiances are in flux. For many years, the tech trade was seen as a dependable ally of the Democratic Occasion, particularly through the Obama years, when the administration fostered shut ties with tech leaders akin to Google’s Eric Schmidt. Nevertheless, because the Biden administration elevated regulatory scrutiny—notably round synthetic intelligence, cryptocurrency, and antitrust—many tech executives started to really feel alienated.
Altman’s critique echoes a rising sentiment amongst tech leaders that the Democratic Occasion has change into hostile to the very forces—innovation, entrepreneurship, and wealth creation—that after outlined Silicon Valley’s ethos.
The jury is out on the true nature of this cut up, as Silicon Valley has lengthy had a libertarian bent whereas Democrats of left-wing and center-lift varieties have lengthy favored sturdy regulation, however the Trump years have created new coalitions. Outstanding tech and enterprise capital executives have more and more aligned with the Republican Occasion whereas expressing the sentiment that they don’t really feel at dwelling anymore with the Democrats.
The political divide in Silicon Valley is now stark. Whereas many tech employees stay liberal or progressive, the higher echelons—CEOs, enterprise capitalists, and founders—are more and more embracing conservative or libertarian ideologies.
Worry of ‘anti-billionaire’ sentiment
The shift is pushed by a number of components:
- Many leaders imagine that Democratic insurance policies stifle innovation by overregulation and punitive taxation.
- Executives cite a rising “anti-billionaire” and anti-tech sentiment inside progressive circles, which they see as antithetical to Silicon Valley’s tradition of risk-taking and wealth creation.
- The Trump administration’s deregulatory stance, particularly on AI and crypto, has confirmed engaging to tech elites searching for fewer constraints on their companies.
Maybe probably the most putting instance of Silicon Valley’s rightward drift is Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz. Previously a Democrat, Andreessen has change into a vocal supporter of Donald Trump, citing the Biden administration’s regulatory method as a risk to the startup ecosystem. In July 2024, Andreessen and his companions launched the “Little Tech Agenda,” a coverage doc advocating for deregulation, decrease taxes, and a hands-off method to innovation. This successfully offered a “permission structure” for tech leaders to again Trump and the GOP.
Andreessen’s transformation is emblematic of a broader pattern: the tech elite’s rising willingness to align with conservative populism if it means defending their pursuits and imaginative and prescient for the long run. Andreessen’s “Techno-Optimist Manifesto” from 2023 argued that technological innovation is the last word answer to social issues and that regulatory constraints are obstacles to be overcome, not safeguards to be revered.
Altman’s declaration of political homelessness and Andreessen’s rightward shift each sign a profound change within the political panorama of Silicon Valley — after which there’s Elon Musk’s deep involvement with Republican politics. A serious backer of Donald Trump’s reelection in 2024, then a distinguished member of the primary few months of Trump’s second time period, and eventually an exile from the White Home, Musk just lately launched the “America Party,” a brand new political get together that he mentioned will present voters with a substitute for the Democratic and Republican events.
For this story, Fortune used generative AI to assist with an preliminary draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the knowledge earlier than publishing.
