Kamala Harris Aims to Sway Silicon Valley Support from Trump in 2024 Election

Kamala Harris has a golden opportunity to pull Silicon Valley away from Trump and Vance

This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in. While several Silicon Valley veterans, including former Meta exec Sheryl Sandberg, have voiced their support for Harris, others have spent the last few months throwing considerable weight behind Trump and his running mate JD Vance. David Sacks, an old PayPal colleague of Peter Thiel, donated $1 million to a pro-Vance Super PAC, while Thiel gave $15 million to his campaign, Politico reported. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has also been enthusiastic about Vance, reportedly participating in a secret lobbying campaign for the former VC. The billionaire officially endorsed Trump for President after an assassination attempt against him in July. With Vance by his side, Trump has been trying to woo Silicon Valley away from Biden. But with Harris at the helm, it's a whole new race. "Momentum has certainly shifted in the tech industry, and many -- including myself -- are now optimistic that Harris can take the reins and drive the Democratic party into the future," Aaron Levie, CEO of Box cloud company, told Business Insider. In Harris, techies have a candidate from their home turf. Born in Oakland, Harris has served as a California senator and as the state's attorney general. She has roots and high-profile friends in the Bay Area. She reportedly attended the 2013 wedding of former Facebook president and investor Sean Parker, and her brother-in-law, Tony West, is Uber's chief legal officer. Many in the Valley view Harris as a much-needed breath of fresh air. "I have known Kamala for decades, and she's been a fighter, a leader, and an advocate for the tech ecosystem," Silicon Valley "super angel" investor Ron Conway said in an X post calling on the tech community rally around Harris. Chiente Hsu, cofounder and CEO of bitcoin platform ALEX, told BI that Harris is "generally viewed more favorably among tech leaders" than Biden. She cited Harris' closer ties to the tech community and favorable stance toward innovation for the renewed enthusiasm. Harris has also shown a willingness to take on Big Tech when needed. During her time as attorney general, she tackled issues such as the distribution of explicit content on social media platforms, with a particular focus on "revenge porn." During the Biden Administration, Harris played an active role in AI regulation. She's previously stated she rejects the "false choice that suggests we can either protect the public, or advance innovation." "Her work on tech-related legal issues and proactive stance on innovation further bolster her reputation," Hsu said. "Harris has been vocal about the need for ethical AI development and robust oversight of Big Tech, reflecting a nuanced approach to tech regulation." Several business elites have already expressed their support for Harris. Some, like Netflix's cofounder Reed Hastings, have been putting their money where their mouth is with hefty donations. If Harris does win over tech executives, it could mean significant financial contributions and strategic support. Levie said Harris represented a "unique opportunity" for the Democratic Party to position itself as pro-tech, pro-AI, and pro-science. "Biden stepping down and the party aligning around Harris has reenergized the community, and many who were previously neutral are now excited about the direction Harris can drive," he said. Harris's stance on some tech issues is still a bit uncertain. Notably, the VP hasn't taken a strong stance on cryptocurrency, but some expect her to become more pro-crypto than Biden. The Biden administration has been increasing its scrutiny of the sector following the collapse of FTX in 2022. Meanwhile, with support from pro-crypto running mate JD Vance, Trump has announced he plans to be the first "crypto president." Nigel Green, CEO of financial services company deVere Group, previously told BI that Harris's views "reflect a cautious approach" to the sector. However, he said he expected Harris to become more pro-crypto to compete effectively with Donald Trump. "This regulatory clarity could bring greater legitimacy to the industry, potentially attracting more institutional investors and mainstream adoption," he added.

Kamala Harris has a golden opportunity to pull Silicon Valley away from Trump and Vance | Business Insider India

Vice President Kamala Harris is shaking up the 2024 election. Harris looks set to secure the Democratic presidential nomination amid a burst of popularity following President Joe Biden's withdrawal from the race. The US President endorsed his current vice president, and many prominent Democrats, including Barack Obama, have followed his lead. Money has been pouring into Harris's campaign, and the VP has already begun campaigning against former president Donald Trump. While several Silicon Valley veterans, including former Meta exec Sheryl Sandberg, have voiced their support for Harris, others have spent the last few months throwing considerable weight behind Trump and his running mate JD Vance. David Sacks, an old PayPal colleague of Peter Thiel, donated $1 million to a pro-Vance Super PAC, while Thiel gave $15 million to his campaign, Politico reported. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has also been enthusiastic about Vance, reportedly participating in a secret lobbying campaign for the former VC. The billionaire officially endorsed Trump for President after an assassination attempt against him in July. With Vance by his side, Trump has been trying to woo Silicon Valley away from Biden. But with Harris at the helm, it's a whole new race. "Momentum has certainly shifted in the tech industry, and many -- including myself -- are now optimistic that Harris can take the reins and drive the Democratic party into the future," Aaron Levie, CEO of Box cloud company, told Business Insider. A California candidate In Harris, techies have a candidate from their home turf. Born in Oakland, Harris has served as a California senator and as the state's attorney general. She has roots and high-profile friends in the Bay Area. She reportedly attended the 2013 wedding of former Facebook president and investor Sean Parker, and her brother-in-law, Tony West, is Uber's chief legal officer. Many in the Valley view Harris as a much-needed breath of fresh air. "I have known Kamala for decades, and she's been a fighter, a leader, and an advocate for the tech ecosystem," Silicon Valley "super angel" investor Ron Conway said in an X post calling on the tech community rally around Harris. Chiente Hsu, cofounder and CEO of bitcoin platform ALEX, told BI that Harris is "generally viewed more favorably among tech leaders" than Biden. She cited Harris' closer ties to the tech community and favorable stance toward innovation for the renewed enthusiasm. Harris has also shown a willingness to take on Big Tech when needed. During her time as attorney general, she tackled issues such as the distribution of explicit content on social media platforms, with a particular focus on "revenge porn." During the Biden Administration, Harris played an active role in AI regulation. She's previously stated she rejects the "false choice that suggests we can either protect the public, or advance innovation." "Her work on tech-related legal issues and proactive stance on innovation further bolster her reputation," Hsu said. "Harris has been vocal about the need for ethical AI development and robust oversight of Big Tech, reflecting a nuanced approach to tech regulation." A lucrative opportunity Several business elites have already expressed their support for Harris. Some, like Netflix's cofounder Reed Hastings, have been putting their money where their mouth is with hefty donations. If Harris does win over tech executives, it could mean significant financial contributions and strategic support. Levie said Harris represented a "unique opportunity" for the Democratic Party to position itself as pro-tech, pro-AI, and pro-science. "Biden stepping down and the party aligning around Harris has reenergized the community, and many who were previously neutral are now excited about the direction Harris can drive," he said. Harris's stance on some tech issues is still a bit uncertain. Notably, the VP hasn't taken a strong stance on cryptocurrency, but some expect her to become more pro-crypto than Biden. The Biden administration has been increasing its scrutiny of the sector following the collapse of FTX in 2022. Meanwhile, with support from pro-crypto running mate JD Vance, Trump has announced he plans to be the first "crypto president." Nigel Green, CEO of financial services company deVere Group, previously told BI that Harris's views "reflect a cautious approach" to the sector. However, he said he expected Harris to become more pro-crypto to compete effectively with Donald Trump. "This regulatory clarity could bring greater legitimacy to the industry, potentially attracting more institutional investors and mainstream adoption," he added.

What would a Kamala Harris presidency mean for tech?

Tech titans have rallied to support Donald Trump, but Kamala Harris is also a long-time friend of tech. Where would she stand as president? Tech titans welcomed US presidential hopeful Donald Trump's pick for vice-president, Senator JD Vance, a former venture capitalist (VC) with investments in tech and crypto companies. One investor exclaimed "we have a former tech VC in the White House," while Tesla boss Elon Musk has been vehement in his support for Trump on his social media platform X, reportedly pledging $45 million (€41 million) a month to the Republican committee called America PAC. But Kamala Harris, the Democratic party's presumptive nominee to take over from President Joe Biden, who dropped out of the election race, is also a long-term tech ally. In 2004, she was elected as San Francisco's district attorney (DA) and served for a second term until 2010, becoming the first woman to be elected to the role and the first Black and South Asian American woman to hold the office. When Harris campaigned in 2020 to lead the Democrats, her donors included Microsoft president Brad Smith, Salesforce co-founder and CEO Marc Benioff, and Amazon general counsel David Zapolsky. After Biden endorsed her to lead this year's presidential bid for the Democrats, she was quickly endorsed by LinkedIn's co-founder Reid Hoffman, who told Wired that tech donors had withheld their support due to the "turmoil" of Biden's run for office this year. Harris raised over $50 million (€46 million) in less than 24 hours after Biden's announcement. But what would a future Harris administration mean for tech? Biden named Harris the artificial intelligence (AI) czar after tasking her with strengthening the rules around AI as part of his executive order on the tech. During that time she met with the founders and CEOs of OpenAI, Microsoft, Alphabet and Anthropic. She has voiced her favour towards safety over company profit. "In the absence of regulation and strong government oversight, some technology companies choose to prioritise profit over the well-being of their customers, the safety of our communities and the stability of our democracies," Harris said at the Global Summit on AI Safety in London last year. Experts say it is likely that she will not make many changes to Biden's tech and AI regulation plans. "You would expect a close alignment with the current approach under Biden with potentially some tweaks," tech analyst Paolo Pescatore told Euronews Next. "While, regulation is not a sexy topic, technology has and continues to be under the spotlight with the ongoing geopolitical tensions not helping either," he said, adding that tech leaders and companies are seeking to exert their influence in the election, given the increasing scrutiny they are facing. Harris has also gone after tech companies when she was senator, most notably their role in online sexual harassment, by questioning executives like Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Capitol Hill, and also during Meta's Cambridge Analytics scandal. Harris could be firm but friendly with tech leaders, given her past experiences and actions. Meanwhile, Trump has tried to court tech leaders and the cryptocurrency industry by promising donors at fundraisers to enact policies that work in their favour, such as cutting corporate taxes. Musk, venture capitalists, and crypto investors the Winklevoss twins have flocked to support his presidential run. But this is not a wave of tech support, according to Carlo Tortora Brayda, founder of the San Francisco-based AI and cybersecurity not-for-profit organisation, the Tortora Brayda Institute. "I do not see a sway, rather, I see this political polarisation as a cultural thing that runs through the generations; you could call it tribal. People support the politics of their tribe, rather than focusing on the policies of candidates and making a decision that way," he told Euronews Next. "What is changing is the composition of leadership and maybe there are more leaders rising to corporate power that have a cultural background that has an affinity with the Trump-Vance hard-line stance," he added. Nevertheless, he said that Harris "is a great candidate as she could build on Biden's work" and is in a strong position as she is from Silicon Valley, favours STEM education and has been a notorious advocate of tech innovation while maintaining a theme of ethical standards and diversity, equity and inclusion in the industry. He said Trump would likely be seen positively by business leaders who favour tax cuts and deregulation but that a Trump presidency "could unpredictably disrupt the uncomfortable geopolitical equilibrium". "Either candidate would have the tech industry's best interest at heart, and they would approach it in their own very distinctive ways," Tortora Brayda said.

Harris aims to open Silicon Valley checkbooks after tech donors had drifted to Trump

WASHINGTON -- As Kamala Harris' campaign looks to re-engage Democratic donors who held back support from President Joe Biden, it is finding renewed interest from a sector that has increasingly favored Donald Trump: Silicon Valley. Democrats say the suggestion tech sector donors were moving toward Republicans was overstated. But they agree Harris -- who started in politics in the Bay Area in California -- has helped unlock support that was on the sidelines. "The pivot that has occurred in the last three days is dramatic," said Steve Westly, a venture capitalist and who ran for governor of California in 2006. "I don't think I've ever seen such a surge of enthusiasm in any campaign I've been involved with." Biden administration accomplishments welcomed by tech industry voters include the CHIPS Act and a climate bill Westly called the "biggest green stimulus in human history." Harris has a strong track record on issues that Silicon Valley donors care about, he said. "She's been out front on R&D tax credits and all the things that have supported [the industry] from the Internet to GPS. Trump is out there saying the most outlandish things imaginable," he said, pointing to his criticism of green energy initiatives and electric vehicles. "The big picture is, most people in tech and most people in business want stability. They don't want to see mobs attacking the Capitol." Westly has regularly hosted high-dollar events for Democratic candidates at his Atherton, Calif., home, including one with Biden in June 2023. He said there were already efforts underway to schedule new events in response to the surge of demand to support Harris, but acknowledged that the compressed timeline makes things difficult. "We raised $50,000 within an hour of sending out our first email and we don't even have a date," he said. "Everyone knows that time is precious. [Events] will need to be two to three times bigger than usual. Ron Conway, a venture capitalist and Democratic donor, was among those who had expressed concern about Biden's June 27 debate performance and implored Democratic leaders to pressure Biden to step aside. In a statement provided to NBC News, he said praised Harris. "I believe our country is at its strongest when we are looking forward, not backward, when we are innovating and growing. Vice President Harris shares that view and Donald Trump does not," he said. "That is why I'm confident that the vast majority of the tech ecosystem in Silicon Valley and beyond will stand firmly behind her as part of a broad coalition that will send her to the Oval Office to keep our country moving in the right direction." But it's not just reliable Democratic donors who have to be convinced to turn the spigot back on after cutting off Biden. There are also donors who are being lured away by Trump. Perhaps the biggest name in the tech sector right now, Elon Musk, has pledged millions in support of Trump's candidacy through a super PAC also supported by the Winklevoss twins and Joe Lonsdale, a venture capitalist. Conway, fellow Democratic donor Reid Hoffman and others have been working the phones to try to sway tech contributors from going to Trump's corner, according to CNBC. Some in the tech community have felt the Biden administration has overregulated their industry, with particular concerns from those leaders in cryptocurrency and AI. Harris could be the Trump alternative wary tech executives have been looking for, as she's had a mixed record on government regulations targeting tech. While a senator of California, Harris said in 2019 that "we have to seriously take a look at [a Facebook breakup]," according to Fortune. Asked if she supports the Biden administration's support for legislation that could lead to a ban on TikTok, a Harris spokesperson pointed to an ABC News interview earlier this year. "We do not intend to ban TikTok. That is not at all the goal or the purpose of this conversation. We need to deal with the owner, and we have national security concerns about the owner of TikTok," she said. Biden signed a bill that could ban TikTok from use in the United States, but only if its parent company, China-based ByteDance, agrees to sell the social media asset by early 2025. Harris has, for years, maintained a close allegiance with some tech leaders. She raised over $500,000 during her 2019 Democratic primary from those working at Amazon, Alphabet, AT&T, Comcast, Microsoft and Apple, according to FEC filings.

JD Vance and Kamala Harris scramble election strategies of US dealmakers

Wall Street grew so frustrated with US President Joe Biden's antitrust policies over the past three and a half years that many long-standing Democratic dealmakers considered switching their support to Donald Trump in the 2024 elections or even boycotting the ballot altogether. But two events have dramatically changed that stance in the past fortnight: Trump named JD Vance as his running mate and Biden dropped his re-election bid, endorsing his vice-president Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination. Mergers and acquisitions practitioners are now reconsidering their electoral strategies. They consider Harris to be potentially more moderate than Vance, who is seen as an economic populist who could double down on the antitrust policies initiated by Biden's trustbusters. "Vance espouses this anti-corporate, populist & isolationist creed that big business, international trade, Wall Street, mergers, immigration, etc are all designed to hurt 'real Americans'," said a top dealmaker. "Vice-president Harris is a moderate who has spent her life enforcing the law respecting precedent. While she would be tough on enforcement, it will be rational enforcement," the dealmaker added. Vance is at the vanguard of a new generation of Maga populists who condemn anti-competitive behaviour by US companies and view Big Tech as a threat to freedom of expression, hindering job creation and propagating the values of the left. This rhetoric from the traditionally business-friendly Republican party has alarmed Wall Street, where several people describe Trump's running mate as the rightwing alter ego of Bernie Sanders, the veteran leftwing senator from Vermont. In his speech at the Republican National Convention last week, Vance railed against finance and big business. "We're done, ladies and gentlemen, catering to Wall Street. We'll commit to the working man," he said. "JD Vance might resonate with the Maga base, but the broader business community is very concerned this morning, as they should be," said a prominent dealmaker the day after Trump selected the senator. US antitrust policy has already become more vigorous over the past three years. Biden in 2021 appointed Lina Khan and Jonathan Kanter to respectively lead the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice's antitrust unit -- a new generation of progressive officials who have clamped down on anti-competitive conduct across the economy. Khan and Kanter are two of the least-liked individuals among financiers across the political spectrum as fear of their scrutiny has discouraged dealmakers and hurt transaction volumes. But Wall Street appears less concerned about Harris. Despite being perceived as progressive, she has been backed by some notable names, including Blair Effron, the co-founder of adviser firm Centerview Partners, and Ray McGuire, a prominent banker at Lazard. Several M&A bankers and lawyers believe that if Harris won the election she could replace Khan with somebody more deal friendly. But a Democratic operative called the speculation "just wish casting", adding: "Do you think that Harris is going to toss out a 35-year-old brown woman immigrant progressive icon?" Harris has not yet articulated her antitrust policy. But in 2010, when Big Tech was not facing as fierce a pushback from Washington and the public over its alleged market abuses, she said: "We cannot be short-sighted . . . we have to allow these [tech] businesses to develop and grow because that's where the models will be created." "This is a very significant source of California's economy," she added. Tech does not dominate the economy of Vance's home state of Ohio in the same way, giving him more leeway to push back against the industry. But Wall Street fears his populist defence of blue-collar jobs. A top antitrust lawyer said Vance's views were more radical than those espoused by Khan and Kanter, which are rooted in curbing market dominance rather than a blanket opposition to M&A. Vance turned heads earlier this year when he said Khan was "one of the few people in the Biden administration . . . doing a pretty good job". "Massive corporate mergers rarely produce their promised benefits but often leave American workers and families behind," he said in March. But Mark Meador, partner at Kressin Meador Powers and visiting fellow at the rightwing Heritage Foundation think-tank, said alarm over Vance was testament to his calibre. "If I'm on Wall Street, I'm concerned that one of the brightest and most articulate [voices] for the populist version of conservatism now has a seat at the table in the White House and the president's ear," he said. Still, Vance's nomination has deepened a generational divide between older conservatives, who largely support a more laissez-faire antitrust approach, and younger Republicans, who are more in line with agendas promoted by Khan and Kanter. The bipartisan realignment is unnerving corporate America. The business community tends to be "very centrist", said Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a professor at the Yale School of Management. "Now . . . the CEOs are wondering 'what's happened to the middle?'" But the drivers behind Democratic progressives and Maga conservatives are different. Khan and Kanter aim to rethink how antitrust statutes are applied to today's sprawling business structures and complex markets, in a bid to protect consumers and curb corporate power. Maga Republicans seek to be standard bearers for working-class Americans and use antitrust to further rightwing, hot-button social issues, such as online platforms allegedly censoring conservative voices. They see antitrust as a "less intrusive" tool to address free speech, with "fewer unintended consequences" compared with "more heavy-handed" government regulation, said Todd Zywicki, a professor at the George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School. Some antitrust observers say it is difficult to forecast how Vance would act in government. Given that his former career as a venture capitalist was bankrolled by Silicon Valley heavyweights such as Peter Thiel, they also wonder to what extent he would challenge the tech industry. Others argue that Vance's closeness to the VC industry does not mean he supported the megadeals that collapsed under Khan and Kanter. A top banker said VC investors backing Vance were more interested in his support for deregulating cryptocurrencies and artificial intelligence. Nor is Harris likely to depart entirely from the antitrust policies initiated during the Biden administration. But the expectation among dealmakers as well as executives in the tech world is that she will have a more moderate approach. Former FTC chair William Kovacic said Harris's stance might depend on whether she strikes a deal with the Democratic party's progressive wing. "There is room for her to move a bit towards the centre on these issues while at the same time saying 'look at this wonderful programme that our antitrust agencies have developed. Full speed ahead'," Kovacic said. Many financiers are still deciding who to support in the upcoming election, but the wave of Wall Street donor support for Harris's campaign suggests they might stick with the devil they know. "While I'm reluctant to say this," a top dealmaker said, "implementing JD Vance's policies would actually make Wall Street long for the return of Lina Khan."