Billionaire venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz plan to donate to former President Donald Trump’s election campaign. This decision significantly shifts Silicon Valley’s typically liberal political contributions.
The venture capitalists, known for co-founding the firm Andreessen Horowitz in 2009, have yet to donate to a presidential campaign. While Andreessen supported Mitt Romney in 2012, he struggled in 2016 between Trump and Hillary Clinton, ultimately endorsing Clinton.
The firm announced last year that its partners would support political candidates who advance technology. Their donations to Trump are motivated by his stances on issues like cryptocurrency and AI regulation rather than social issues such as abortion or the Supreme Court.
This support reflects a belief that Trump’s policies may better benefit tech startups than President Biden's, who they perceive as favouring established companies. Notably, Andreessen sits on the board of Facebook, and their firm has invested in Microsoft-affiliated OpenAI.
As Trump solidifies his frontrunner status, more tech executives might follow Andreessen and Horowitz’s lead in backing his campaign.