Reid Hoffman, the Founder of LinkedIn and a Billionaire Silicon Valley Venture Capitalist, has made a half-dozen or so Investments in recent months with a specific aim: to Counteract the Influence of President Trump. “My approach to political investing is the Silicon Valley approach,” Hoffman, 50, said in an interview. “Find and back powerful entrepreneurs.”
Hoffman has emerged as Silicon Valley’s prime Behind-the-scenes Political Influencer. A Democrat with a Net Worth of more than $3 Billion, he has spread his cash this year by Financing groups that want to Restore Dialogue and Inclusion to Politics. The moves put him at the Vanguard of a Political Awakening of Technology Leaders, who are emerging as a potential West Coast Power Center that could help Invigorate Trump’s Opponents.
The Venture-style Investments include starting a new group, Win the Future, whose self-described Goal is to make the Democratic Party relevant again.
#WTF is a Virtual Political Party, a movement within the Democratic Party. Their Goals are to:
1) Identify through Crowdsourcing what People care about and surface New Leaders who will Represent their Common Agenda.
2) Engage Millions of Americans in their Democracy.
3) Win Elections that support the People’s Agenda.
To move quickly, they’re using Twitter so that anyone can Propose, Vote up, and Engage with Campaigns that they care about. They’re starting with the Billboard Campaign, and hope you’ll vote on the ones you like, Propose your own, and Donate. For every $5,000 they raise, they can add another. They’re starting with the Billboard Campaign to make known to our Politicians what People care most about. In the coming Months, they will be developing a Crowdsourcing Platform that will help bring Political Engagement into the 21st Century. They will also Launch a Ground Strategy, relying on Volunteers, to Open a Dialogue and Engage Americans across the Country. They will work with Community Groups who are Supporting Access to and Participation in Elections, along with Groups who Support their Ethos.
CLICK HERE to find out more about Win the Future.
Hoffman also invested $1 Million in Cortico, a Start-Up that encourages Online Discourse between People with opposing Political Views.
Cortico aims to foster a healthy public sphere for all. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that applies AI technologies from the MIT Media Lab to map the public sphere and build tools to navigate it, so as to empower an ecosystem that tends to the public sphere.
The Public sphere is an Open and Inclusive space where People can come together Freely to Identify and Discuss Societal Issues and Collectively Develop Solutions. It is essential to a Functioning Democracy where Institutions are held Accountable and Responsive to the needs of People.
With Advances in the Internet, the Public Sphere is undergoing dramatic change. How Public Opinion is shaped, the ways the Public Interacts with Institutions, and underlying Power Structures are all Transforming as parts of the Public Sphere become Digital. While Digitization has been Positive and Empowering for many, certain maladies have accompanied this change. We see Information Cocoons that Divide, False Information that Misinforms, and Polls that Misapprehend.
In this Environment, their Commitment is to give Voice to Common Ground.
CLICK HERE to find out more about Cortico.
Hoffman Invested Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars into:
Vote.org, which has a Goal of getting All Eligible Americans to Vote. Vote.org uses Technology to simplify Political Engagement, Increase Voter Turnout, and Strengthen American Democracy.
CLICK HERE to find out more about Vote.org.
Higher Ground Labs, a start-up for Progressive Politicians.
Higher Ground Labs is Building an Ecosystem for Progressive Political Technology. They provide Capital, Assistance, Programming, and Mentorship to Talented Individuals and Early Stage Companies who are Building the Next Generation of Progressive Political Technology that can help Win Campaigns.
The current Ecosystem around Progressives' Campaign and Persuasive tech is Broken. It lacks committed Capital, Sustained Mentorship, and a Network of Active Supporters to make New Ideas successful. Rather than build Tech and Data Infrastructure from the bottom up, Progressives have instead relied on Presidential Campaigns as their Innovation Hubs, Generating a Recurring pattern of Short-Term Thinking from Hard-Working, but Under-Resourced Campaign Staff Tasked with Innovating on Products while trying to Win National-Scale Campaigns.
Their Programming is designed to Spark and Nurture New Collaborations and Start-Ups, and to Strengthen the Bonds of Connectivity across Progressive Tech. It includes:
(1) An Active Accelerator for Companies building Scalable Political Technology
(2) Fellowships that allow Individuals to Explore Ideas for Solutions to Problems
(3) A Recurring Summit for Political and Technology Experts to forge Alliances and Share Ideas
(4) Ad Hoc Events like Unconferences and Hackathons that Deepen and Reinforce the Ecosystem.
Higher Ground Labs has assembled a Large and Active Advisory Board with deep Domain Expertise in Political Campaigns, Entrepreneurship, Tech Start-Ups, Data Science, Software Engineering, and Investing. These Advisors will serve as Hands-Onn Mentors for their Portfolio Companies and help Accelerate their Development, Strategy, and Execution.
CLICK HERE to find out more about Higherground.com.
The Center on Rural Innovation (CORI), which is working for Economic Improvements in Rural Areas.
CORI is a Start-Up Social Enterprise that uses Data-Driven Methods and Deep Experience in Economic Development to Help Rural Communities across the Country: Plan, Implement, and Facilitate Financing for Rural Revitalization Projects.
CLICK HERE to find out more about The Center on Rural Innovation.
But how effective a Silicon Valley approach to Political Change can be is a question, and Hoffman has experienced stumbling blocks before.
In 2014, he Invested personally in Change.org, an Online Petition start-Up. Last Fall, the Company laid off more than a Third of its Employees after burning through more than $40 Million in Venture Capital. Years of Mismanagement, Hoffman said, had “essentially atrophied” the Start-Up and it was always running a Deficit.
In the Spring, Mr. Hoffman pumped almost $30 Million in New Financing into Change.org and installed New Board Members, to try again. “I’m optimistic about where we can get to,” he said, “but it doesn’t mean it’s not a bumpy road.”
CLICK HERE to find out more about Change.org.
Debra Cleaver, a former Change.org Employee who now Runs Vote.org, said it was important to Pursue Innovative ways for Achieving Change. But, she added, Politically Driven Investments can be more successful when they are “treated with the same level of accountability” as traditional Venture Capital Investments.
Hoffman is motivated by a sense that People are Morally obliged to Participate in Civic Society, said Peter Thiel, the Silicon Valley Investor and a Founder of the Digital Payments company PayPal. Thiel, a Supporter of Trump, has known Hoffman since both attended Stanford University in the 1980s. “I would describe Reid as left of center, with a very strong sense of empathy for those who are less fortunate,” Thiel wrote in an email. “It’s more of a character trait than an ideological position.”
Hoffman's Potential Solutions to Four Problems"
ImmigrationGrant - more Work Visas to companies that Create New Jobs, beyond those afforded by the Visas, in struggling Communities. The Labor Influx would Increase the Tax base and Support small Businesses.
EmploymentArtificial - Artificial Intelligence will Eliminate some Jobs and Create others. The Transition can be eased with Pro-Entrepreneurship Policies, Safety-Net Programs, and Measures that support more Jobs in areas like Education and Health Care.
EducationGive - Coding Boot Camps and other Nontraditional Training Programs the same Value in the Job Market as a College Degree by creating a New Accreditation System and letting Students Pay with Federal Student Aid Money.
Government ServicesTax - Redistribute Money to the Poor in the Form of Services and Aid that help Increase their Own Abilities to emerge from Poverty. Use Technology to make those Services more Accessible, Cost Efficient, and Easier to Assess and Use.
In 2000, he joined Thiel as an Executive at PayPal, a stint that made Hoffman a Millionaire. He founded LinkedIn, the Career-Oriented Social Network, in 2003, spurred by trying to Connect People and the Openness of Online Communities.
While continuing to Lead LinkedIn as Chairman, he Joined the Venture Capital firm Greylock Partners in 2009 to Invest in Start-Ups. LinkedIn went Public two years later, making Hoffman a Billionaire. He added to his Fortune last year when Microsoft bought LinkedIn for $26.2 Billion.
By then, he had become involved in Policy. During President Obama’s Administration, Hoffman nurtured Ties with the White House and Democratic Politicians like Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey. “Reid was among the top leaders in Silicon Valley to whom we looked for good counsel” on Issues like Immigration, said Valerie Jarrett, a former Senior Adviser to Obama.
Last year, Hoffman joined the Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Advisory Board, a Group helping to Modernize the military. Hoffman offered Ideas about the impact that Artificial Intelligence would have on Combat, and suggested ways to improve the Military’s Personnel Retention.
He also was involved with Hillary Clinton’s Presidential Campaign and spoke out against Trump. At one point, he offered to Donate up to $5 million to Veterans groups if Trump would Release a Copy of his Tax Returns.
Mrs. Clinton’s Defeat Forced Hoffman to Recalibrate in various ways, especially in his View of Social Media. Reddit, Facebook, and Twitter had given Trump and his Supporters Vast Platforms, and Tech companies like Facebook had given Mass Distribution to Misinformation Campaigns.
Hoffman convened a small Group of Tech Leaders to dine with Tony Blair, the former British Prime Minister, at the Rosewood Hotel in Menlo Park, Calif. The Group discussed the Prospect of Governments trying to Regulate Tech Companies and, in particular, the Unemployment Problems being Created by Automation and Artificial Intelligence.
Sam Altman, the President of the Start-Up Incubator Y Combinator, offered a suggestion: Universal Basic Income, under which the Government Provides Poor Citizens with a Guaranteed Check. Hoffman worried the Idea did not Account for how Work can Provide a Sense of Purpose and community. “At the end of the day, most people don’t want a handout,” he said. “Given a chance, they’ll work hard.”
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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