A billionaire who backed Donald Trump for president is now putting his money behind a new "anti-woke" venture capital fund with the purpose of backing right-wing, pro-MAGA startups, Forbes reported on Monday.
Specifically, the project is being bankrolled by Marc Andreesen, a venture capital executive who is also advising tech billionaire Elon Musk's "Department of Government Efficiency" task force to recommend trillions of dollars in spending cuts to grants and public programs.
He is partnering with New Founding, an obscure company that earlier this year created a plan to build an isolated right-wing Christian community in Kentucky for people to "disappear from the cultural insanity of the broader country."
New Founding, according to David Jeans, is now setting up "a venture capital fund to invest in what it calls 'aligned companies,' startups that oppose progressive ideologies and are intent on both 'cultural and economic disruption.' It’s one of a small but growing number of VCs vocally rejecting ‘wokeism’ and building their investment thesis on core conservative values."
New Founding "decries leftists as 'anti-human,' celebrates technology as a singular force that will define a new era of prosperity, loves crypto and sees the internet ('deeply American in ethos and design') as a means to its ends. 'Our project offers a powerful avenue,' a manifesto on its website published in July reads, 'both to develop the class of people who can ultimately challenge the incumbent regime and to acquire the resources, territory, and institutions that will enable this effort,'" said the report. Its end goal is to use technology to reshape America along theocratic and pro-MAGA values.
Andreesen, according to the report, invested a "six-figure sum" in the project on a "limited partner" basis.
So far, this venture and other firms like Azoria Partners and 1789 Capital which have made similar promises to invest in "anti-woke" companies, are raising small amounts of money compared to the major investment firms, but they are hoping to grow — and are convinced in part that they'll get better returns by rejecting companies that are committed to diversity and inclusion.
As all of this is going on, Democrats have sought to shine a light on the influence of billionaires into MAGA ideology and governance, in particular accusing Trump's administration of being a puppet to Musk's business goals.
