| Hi, it’s Ed in San Francisco. Some Silicon Valley Democratic venture capitalists are thinking maybe the next Trump administration won’t be that bad for technology investors. But first... Three things you need to know today: • Bitcoin surged past $81,000 on optimism over Donald Trump’s support
• Swiggy’s 13-minute deliveries fuel a $1.3 billion IPO
• BYD closes in on Ford in annual shipments after beating Tesla on quarterly revenue Venture capitalists, founders and tech executives who backed Vice President Kamala Harris are now pondering what life’s going to be like for them under a second term of President-elect Donald Trump.
Soul searching, unpacking, processing and planning were all words used in phone calls, emails and DMs between me and some of a large pool that publicly and financially supported Harris as the pick to be the 47th US President. Many have taken to social media since Trump won.
For some, this is really hard. There’s a lot of sorrow, disappointment and anxiety about what will happen to the business of investing in and growing technology companies. However, many others, more quickly than they expected, are contemplating how Trump’s return might be good for their industry. That was, after all, the pitch that a large group of VCs and tech leaders who backed Trump argued: his was the pro-tech ticket.
Trump’s tech appeal is based on the idea that he will cut red tape through deregulation, champion entrepreneurship, replace leaders of key agencies and continue a focus on making high tech, particularly its manufacture, more competitive in America — which the Biden administration had started through signature pieces of legislation. Harris backers now realize that they had quite a similar wish list.
“While I’m disappointed in the outcome, I’m hopeful that President Trump will serve all Americans and deliver on the promises he made,” Moxxie Ventures founder Katie Jacobs Stanton told me. Stanton was one of the higher-profile Harris backers, vocal about the idea that the majority of Silicon Valley didn’t support Trump. Groups like VCs for Kamala and Tech4Kamala, and leaders like Reid Hoffman and Box CEO Aaron Levie argued that Harris’ biggest selling points were stability and her close ties to California and the Bay Area.
“I was mentally prepared for this outcome, so I am OK. I hope you are too,” Leslie Feinzaig, a leader of VCs for Kamala, posted on LinkedIn. She congratulated Trump, said she hopes he serves all Americans and offered optimism for the future — as did many other signatories to the initiative, across social media.
Levie’s reaction is similar. Before the election, he set out his case on why Harris was the better, pro-business candidate. But quickly following the result, he expressed to his 2.5 million followers on X his optimism around manufacturing, business formation, innovation and less regulation.
Hoffman, in a post on LinkedIn (a company he co-founded), reiterated his concerns about Trump’s prior actions, but noted he’s talked with industry peers on the other side of the political divide who have moved to assuage his fears. And the divide may not get in the way of business, according to Palmer Luckey of defense tech startup Anduril Industries Inc. “I'm a Republican, obviously. I'm the founder of Anduril. But our CEO, Brian Schimpf, is a Democrat. He fundraised for Kamala. He’s done fundraisers for other Democrat politicians,” Luckey told me on Bloomberg Television last week. Take that to mean the two of them are going to get on just fine. Elsewhere, momentum in industries like climate tech and sustainable transportation is expected to have staying power. Steve Westly, a long-time Democratic fundraiser, former Tesla Inc. board member and California state controller in the early 2000s, said the industries he’s investing in will thrive regardless of who’s in office.
“Having called global warming a hoax, no one is going to confuse Trump for a ‘Green Crusader,’” Wesley told me in an email. Still, he pointed to the increase in renewable energy sources, the jobs those industries provide and appeals by Republicans to honor the tax credits provided for through the Inflation Reduction Act as reasons for optimism. “The good news is virtually every industry is on a journey to decarbonize, and as smart people continue to create new technologies, money will be made,” he said. There’s also been some surprising, specific and indirect benefits that the Harris camp in Silicon Valley has seen. Brian Brackeen, an investor at Lightship Capital who backed Harris, is also raising a $2 billion fund. Since the election results, he said he’s seen fresh inbound interest from investors. But maybe not for the reasons you’d think.
“People are investing in diversity as a form of rebellion," Brackeen told me. He believes that President Joe Biden deserves credit for his economic achievements in office, but in the Trump term to come, “the Biden economy will last two-three years before Trump can run it into the ground.” Some of the fighting talk is still there.—Edward Ludlow The election is over, but the race is on to complete subsidy deals under the Chips Act before Donald Trump enters the White House. More than 20 companies including Intel and Samsung are still working on their contracts, and the Biden administration wants to insulate its marquee industrial policy from partisan politics. Dogecoin and other smaller cryptocurrencies surged on speculation about digital assets’ prospects under Donald Trump. Delivery Hero readies an initial public offering in Dubai that could raise $1 billion. Liontown cut lithium production plans in response to slumping prices of the battery metal. | 
