Turmoil in Trump’s Second Term: Conservative Tech Leaders Express Discontent
Two months into Donald Trump’s second term, rumblings of discontent are emerging from conservative leaders within the tech industry. The same individuals who once saw an ally in the former president are now grappling with the consequences of his actions, finding it increasingly difficult to navigate their businesses in a landscape reshaped by Trump’s style of governance.
“None of my friends who voted for Trump are happy right now. Everyone is annoyed,” says Reggie James, founder of Eternal, a new-media company backed by Andreessen Horowitz. “When tech people got involved in the government, they thought Trump was going to take more of a surgical approach and act less like a wrecking ball.”
Several Silicon Valley executives, speaking on condition of anonymity, echoed these sentiments. Their disappointments were primarily directed at the impact of the Department of Government Efficiency on the federal government and the broader economic environment. One partner at a top-tier venture firm, directly involved in the Trump administration, stated, “We were all on board for a more business-friendly presidency, but in the end, the whole industry of crypto and AI got rug pulled.” That same individual went on to say, “The people surrounding Trump are all scamsters. They are getting rich off our votes, our dollars, and our time.”
While the tech industry remains largely liberal, many influential players, including venture capital firms like Andreessen Horowitz and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, hosts of the popular tech podcast “All-In,” and billionaire CEOs such as Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos, had previously supported Trump. However, recent events, including herky-jerky tariffs, mass government layoffs, and market instability, have eroded their patience and enthusiasm.
The discontent is particularly pronounced among startup founders, many of whom are bracing for a potential economic downturn. Sara Mauskopf, founder of the venture-backed childcare marketplace provider Winnie, explained that founders “are deeply worried over whether they’re going to be able to raise funding.”
Others are frustrated by the administration’s approach to cryptocurrencies. While the Biden administration took a hard-line perspective, Trump has enthusiastically embraced the crypto community. A memecoin associated with Trump launched days before his inauguration, which reached a massive market capitalization before declining significantly. As president, Trump appointed David Sacks, cohost of “All-In,” as the country’s “crypto czar,” hosted a summit, pardoned Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, and signed an executive order, establishing a strategic bitcoin reserve and US digital asset stockpile.
On X, Palantir cofounder, Joe Lonsdale, who has voiced support for the former president, condemned the use of taxpayer dollars for a digital currency reserve. Lonsdale stated that the executive branch shouldn’t be involved in “picking winners and losers.”
One venture capitalist and advisor to the Trump administration raised concerns over the potential for crypto founders to leverage their proximity to Trump for personal gain. They referenced Steve Witkoff, a longtime Trump associate, who was appointed as the United States special envoy to the Middle East. “Steve Witkoff is calling every sovereign government and saying, ‘You need to support this coin if you want to be in good standing with Trump,'” the source said.
One conservative entrepreneur suggested that the relationship between Trump and the technology industry was never destined to last. “Tech people don’t get politicians, and politicians don’t understand tech,” he said. “Some of this is because tech people don’t really have an ideology. They operate in a globalist, new world order. Trump is only interested in deals for America.”
This America-first approach still resonates in more conservative tech enclaves like El Segundo, California. Isaiah Taylor, founder of Valar Atomics, expressed appreciation for Trump’s transparency. Others, such as Erik Kriessmann, a board member of the defense tech company Anduril, believe that any negative developments are temporary.
However, there’s the reality that defense tech companies such as Anduril and Palantir are now feeling the effects as Trump proposes budget cuts to the military. Noah Smith, an economist, believes that tariffs are already causing one of Trump’s wealthiest supporters, Jeff Bezos, to reconsider. Approximately 25% of items on Amazon come from China. Recently, Bezos announced that the opinion page of The Washington Post, which he owns, would now be dedicated to the “support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets.” Smith’s assessment is that this declaration is Bezos’ way of opposing Trump, not conservatism. “Trump is anti-free enterprise. So if you want to be in with the business people but against Trump, you say, ‘I am for free enterprise.'” The Post has indeed published articles critical of Trump.
“The people that are very unhappy right now — the people who should have been the staunchest supporters in the tech world — are getting the rug pulled out from under them,” Smith continues. For now, the tech industry is hoping economic setbacks will only be temporary.
