Yoni Rechtman says Trump's second term is far worse because the guardrails are gone, and calls tech's silence and complicity appalling.
Rechtman blames Gary Gensler, Lina Khan, and California's wealth tax for pushing tech right, calling most VCs amoral financiers.
Slow Ventures avoids foundation models, backing Atomic's Git replacement and Metropolis, which raised about $4bn.
A VC argues tech's Trump silence is complicity
Yoni Rechtman argues that most venture capitalists are amoral financiers who follow momentum. He blames overzealous regulation from Gary Gensler and Lina Khan, plus California's wealth tax, for pushing tech right, and sees Trump's nationalizations and pressure on the Fed as a threat to markets and democracy. Democrats, he says, should embrace supply-side abundance politics. Slow Ventures reflects his contrarian approach, avoiding foundation models to back second-order AI effects and buyout-driven growth.
Takeaways
Tech's silence on Trump is complicity. Rechtman defends his tweet calling the industry's silence and enthusiasm appalling, saying no tax cut or M&A approval is worth it. He argued about DOGE at a tech event after the inauguration and says Trump's second term is worse because guardrails are gone.
VCs are amoral momentum chasers. He calls most venture capitalists amoral financiers who sell money to whoever they can, and blames overzealous regulation from Gary Gensler and Lina Khan, plus California's wealth tax, for pushing tech right.
Trump's interventions threaten markets and democracy. He points to nationalizations in steel and chips, and to the criminal prosecution of Jerome Powell, as attempts to control the central bank. Third-world-style corruption could leave the US like Argentina or Russia.
Slow Ventures backs weird takes on important stories. The four-partner firm looks for about 80% alignment and avoids foundation models, preferring second-order AI effects. Rechtman says AI inverts systems built on scarce production and abundant attention, making code review a bottleneck.
Git will not survive AI code generation. Rechtman predicts Git is structurally challenged and will not survive 20 years of LLM-assisted software development. GitHub and GitLab struggle, and Slow backed Atomic as a replacement for Git.
Metropolis shows buyout-driven growth. It raised $100m to buy a parking lot operator and about $1.5bn to take the biggest public company in its space private. It recently raised around $4bn. Too much money too fast throttles progress, he warns.
Creator fund makes 360 deals. Slow's $65m fund, run by Megan and Sam Lessin, capitalizes creators for everything they do and takes a piece. It backed woodworker Jonathan Katz Moses, while MrBeast's Beastburgers shows the risks of the model.
Rechtman's Democratic playbook
Embrace supply-side abundance politics. He works with Abundance New York and is close to the Inclusive Abundance Initiative.
Praise leaders who explain delivery. He cites Kathy Hochul's congestion pricing messaging, where the money funds subway improvements that cut commute times and pollution.
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Drop the California wealth tax. He calls it stupid and unlikely to survive court, preferring to end the step-up in basis and tax buy-borrow-die.
Be willing to wield power. He calls Merrick Garland a coward for not prosecuting Trump and praises Bill Clinton's line about what is right with America.
Compete in blue cities and states. He says they can be a strength for Democrats in the midterms and 2028, or an albatross.