Silicon Valley Billionaire Reid Hoffman, a prominent supporter of Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign and past visitor to Epstein Island, has warned that political divisions are straining relationships in Silicon Valley during the heated 2024 election.
Bloomberg reports that Reid Hoffman, the billionaire co-founder of LinkedIn, Democrat mega-donor, and visitor to Epstein Island, has expressed concerns about the lasting impact of the contentious 2024 presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump on the tech industry. In an interview with Bloomberg Television last week, Hoffman said that the political rancor has cooled some normally warm relationships in Silicon Valley.
“I don’t think it’s just retaliation in business circumstances from folks who are supporting Trump,” Hoffman said, describing the divisions as deep and potentially long-lasting. He noted that certain limited partners, or investors in venture capital firms, were “very supportive of Trump” and had withdrawn support from firms whose partners are backing Harris. Although Greylock was not directly affected by such moves, Hoffman refrained from providing specifics on the investors or firms involved.
Silicon Valley, known for its leftist leanings, has seen a surge in support for Trump in recent months. High-profile figures such as Elon Musk and venture capitalists like 8VC General Partner Joe Lonsdale and Sequoia Capital Partner Shaun Maguire have made significant donations to the Trump campaign. They have also engaged in public disputes with Hoffman, Vinod Khosla, and other Harris supporters on the Musk-owned social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
Looking ahead to a potential Harris administration, Hoffman expressed hope that FTC Chair Lina Khan would reconsider policies around mergers and acquisitions to encourage more activity in the tech sector. He also said he hopes SEC Chair Gary Gensler will revise regulations to provide more certainty for emerging industries.
While Hoffman admitted he hasn’t fully considered the implications of a Trump victory, he emphasized the need for businesses to build resilience in what he anticipates could be a chaotic and uncertain period marked by “grifter capitalism.” This, he explained, would involve “sweating various businesses for his own political favor.” Hoffman also expressed hope that if Elon Musk takes a role in a Trump government, the billionaire CEO will treat competing businesses fairly.
“Obviously I’m very hopeful that Vice President Harris will win the election,” Hoffman said. “And so therefore haven’t done enormous contingency planning yet.”
Read more at Bloomberg here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.