Marc Andreessen, co-founder of the prominent venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), has announced his support for former President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election, marking a major break from his longtime allegiance to the Democratic Party.
TechCrunch Reports Marc Andreessen, a heavyweight in the Silicon Valley venture capital ecosystem, has announced his intention to vote for Donald Trump in the upcoming 2024 presidential election. Ben & Mark Shaw “The New York Times” podcast marks a major shift for Andresen, who has previously endorsed Democratic candidates including Bill Clinton, Al Gore, John Kerry, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
Andreessen’s argument for this political shift is based primarily on what he perceives as Trump’s more favorable policies towards the tech industry, particularly the startup ecosystem. The venture capitalist, along with a16z co-founder Ben Horowitz, expressed deep concerns about the future of American tech under the current administration.
The podcast discussion positioned technology as one of the three key pillars of American global dominance, along with economic and military power. Andreessen and Horowitz argued that technological power played a key role in America’s peaceful victory over the Soviet Union during the Cold War. They emphasized that maintaining America’s technological edge is essential to maintaining its economic and military dominance.
Andreessen and Horowitz outlined several talking points about the Biden administration’s approach to tech regulation. They accused the White House of planning to “overregulate” artificial intelligence. Andreessen warned that self-regulation of AI development could put the U.S. at a disadvantage in the global technology race.
The venture capitalists also shared insights from a recent dinner with former President Trump, where they discussed his stance on AI. According to Horowitz, while Trump acknowledged the potential risks of AI technology, he emphasized the importance of American leadership in the field, saying, “AI is very scary, but we absolutely have to win, because if we don’t win, China will win.”
Another difference Andreessen highlighted was cryptocurrency regulation, where he praised Trump’s approach as being “fully supportive of the entire cryptocurrency industry” and contrasted it with the Biden administration’s policies.
However, the most important factor in Andreessen’s decision to back Trump appears to be the Biden administration’s proposal to tax unrealized capital gains. Andreessen called it a “final straw” and argued that such a policy could have a devastating effect on the startup ecosystem. He explained that the venture capital model would be unsustainable if startups were required to pay taxes on increases in valuation before they realized any real profits.
“If you’re a venture capitalist, that means a chunk of your portfolio is taken away every year. You have no choice but to go out of business,” Andreessen said, highlighting the potential impact on startups’ viability under such a tax system.
The political stance is in line with Andreessen’s broader vision for technology’s role in society: Last October, he published a “Techno-Optimist Manifesto,” calling for technologists to embrace innovation as “the only source of lasting growth” and ignore critics and pessimists.
Founded 15 years ago, Andreessen Horowitz has established itself as Silicon Valley’s largest venture capitalist, with more than $42 billion in assets under management, according to PitchBook, underscoring its influence in the tech investment space.
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Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering free speech and online censorship.
