A16z founders tout Trump’s crypto cred in endorsement
The founders of a16z, one of the most deep-pocketed venture capital firms in the US, endorsed former President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
Why? Among other reasons, Trump’s position on crypto, said Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.
“The future of our business, the future of technology, new technology and the future of America is literally at stake,” said Horowitz in the beginning of a podcast released on Tuesday.
Their support comes as other tech luminaries line up to back Trump’s second reelection bid.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, said he will donate around $45 million a month to a pro-Trump super PAC.
And some in the crypto industry, including Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, have also pledged their support.
President Joe Biden’s administration has been seen as, if not hostile, then at least highly critical of crypto.
He recently vetoed a pro-crypto bill and proposed the closure of a tax loophole for crypto traders.
Gary Gensler, the Securities and Exchange Commission chair appointed by Biden, has cemented a reputation as a crypto boogeyman as his agency has fired off a barrage of enforcement actions against the industry.
Crypto champions have said they hope that a Trump administration will prove friendlier and will see a new chair at the helm of the SEC.
‘Little tech’
Andreessen and Horowitz talked up how Trump’s presidency will be better for smaller startups and not just big tech goliaths like Google and Meta.
“For little tech, we think Donald Trump is actually the right choice,” said Horowitz. “Sorry mum, I know you’re going to be mad at me for this, but we had to do it.”
The two a16z founders said the Biden administration’s policies inhibit the growth of the US tech industry.
Specifically, they see the current administration’s crackdown on the crypto industry as evidence of its too-restrictive stance on tech.
“They’ve sued, I think, over 30 of our companies,” Horowitz said of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, adding later: “It’s just been really terribly frustrating and hard for us and for the industry.”
Crypto as prelude
Crypto, though, isn’t the sector du jour in tech. Artificial intelligence is the new buzzword.
And it’s something in which a16z has invested significant cash, including stakes in industry luminaries like OpenAI and Mistral.
“My big concern is what we saw in crypto was the foreshadowing of what’s gonna happen in AI,” he said.
That’s why he and Horowitz highlighted Trump and the Republican party’s much more vocal support for crypto.
“We will end the unlawful and un-American crypto crackdown,” wrote Republicans in their recently released policy platform for the 2024 elections.
Andreessen said the platform’s explicit mention of crypto surprised him.
“It’s a flat-out blanket endorsement of the entire space,” he added.
Ben Weiss is a Dubai Correspondent at DL News. Got a tip? Email him at [email protected].
