For years, silicon Valley has backed the Democratic party, but recently, it was brought to light that a “significant right-of-center group” of tech executives exists. This was a “surprise” to tech billionaire Bill Gates.
The 69-year-old philanthropist has been speaking with media outlets as he prepared to release his new memoir, Source Code: My Beginnings. Published by Knopf, the book is the first in a volume of three that Gates is currently writing. The publication date is February 4, 2025.
A Visible Shift in Political Support
The co-founder of Microsoft and multi-billionaire said in an interview with the New York Times that he “always thought of Silicon Valley as being left of center.”
“The fact that now there is a significant right-of-center group is a surprise to me,” Gates told the New York Times.
The political support of several prominent tech executives has shifted from supporting the Democratic candidates running for office to Republicans, most notably transitioning their support to President Donald Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign.
The Wealthiest Donor in the World
The wealthiest person in the world, Elon Musk, is the perfect example of this massive shift. Musk is the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX and wields influence on X (formerly Twitter), the social media platform he purchased in 2022.
In the past, Musk called himself a moderate and openly supported Democratic candidates. He voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020. Musk became a vocal supporter of Trump and endorsed him during the 2024 presidential campaign after he announced his intention to vote Republican. Subsequently, Musk became one of Trump’s largest individual donors.
At the end of the 2024 presidential campaign, Musk gave a mysterious super PAC, RBG PAC, over $20 million to help elect Donald Trump. Campaign finance reports reveal that Musk donated over $250 million to Trump.
After Musk acquired Twitter, which he renamed X, his political switch was visible. It aligned with his advocacy for deregulation and free speech.
Now, Musk is a key advisor to Trump in the White House, heading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). DOGE is an advisory board that has not been approved as a federal executive department.
A Broader Trend Among Tech Leaders
Co-founder of Paypal and venture capitalist David Sacks is another prominent figure who stopped supporting Democratic candidates and switched his allegiance to Republicans. In 2016, Sacks donated nearly $70,000 to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. In 2024, Sacks was a prominent supporter of Donald Trump and even hosted a fundraiser for him that raised an estimated $12 million for the Trump campaign.
Sacks’s switch in parties reflects a broader trend among tech leaders. As the tech industry has grown more critical of progressive policies, it has changed course to advocate for a conservative economic management and government approach.
The Original Outlier
Another co-founder of Paypal and Palantir Technologies, Peter Thiel, is the original outlier in Silicon Valley because of his conservative beliefs. He started supporting Libertarian causes and candidates and even endorsed Ron Paul in 2008. Later, he threw his support behind Donald Trump and donated $1.25 million to Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.
That support for Trump continued throughout the 2024 election cycle, during which Thiel was a key ally and donor to the campaign.
Other Switched Allegiences
Ben Horowitz, the co-founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, was another defector to the Republican party despite his liberal upbringing. Horowitz endorsed Trump in the 2024 election despite support for Democratic candidates in the past. Horowitz switched allegiance because of the Biden administration’s tech policies on artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency.
The other co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz, Marc Andreessen, also supported Trump’s presidential bid.
