The radical turn of technology and how Silicon Valley is no longer "a progressive space": "The objective is for a CEO to manage the State"

Chijioke Obinna

The radical turn of technology and how Silicon Valley is no longer "a progressive space": "The objective is for a CEO to manage the State"

This week a tweet from Alex Karp, the CEO of the American cybersecurity company Palantir, went viral, which is a kind of manifesto in which he exposes all his ideas and which has not left anyone indifferent. As explained in The world order in Julia in the wave The objective they pursue is to end democracy and for companies to dominate the world and govern the countries.

The company was founded in 2004 and its role is to collect and analyze data at “stratospheric levels”, in the words of experts. Although it was created just after 9/11 with the aim of helping the United States, it has been evolving and diversifying its activity, although it has always maintained “a very close relationship” with US federal agencies and the government, as it works for the CIA, ICE, the FBI and the US Department of Defense.

It was founded by Peter Thiel, who also previously founded Paypal, but he decided that he was not going to be the CEO and put one of “the most extravagant profiles currently in this sector” in charge, according to journalists. Alex Karp is a philosopher, he declares himself a disciple of Habermass and what is striking is that before he was a person with a “very progressive profile, the typical Silicon Valley profile of a racialized family, who believed in democracy and progress.”

Silicon Valley is no longer that place of progress and free markets

However, his ideas have changed to the opposite extreme. Now, in his speeches, there are xenophobic and racist overtones with the aim of “defending Western civilization” and the United States, while democracy has taken a backseat. “Do you know what the problem is that they have in Europe? None of their leaders believe that it will exist in 50 years,” he says in one of his talks.

Additionally, Karp has written a book and is an example that Silicon Valley is no longer that place focused solely on technology, but is now intrinsically linked to politics. According to Julia Otero, in the manifesto it is “clearly” that “this guy is bothered by democracy” because it is “a burden.”

Accelerate political tensions so that democracy in the United States collapses

Peter Thiel also plays an important role because he is “one of the main representatives” of the “reactionary” movement that is establishing itself in Silicon Valley. “These neoreactionaries believe that the values ​​of democracy have caused the decline of the West and are incompatible with freedom,” experts have declared. Julia on the wave.

The goal? “Feed, accelerate political tensions so that democracy collapses in the United States and in this way implement an authoritarian regime in which the State is governed as if it were a company, where a CEO manages that State,” he stated. The world order.

The role of technology and its objective to end democracy

And Thiel has already dropped on many occasions that technology is the way to end democracy. “Maybe we can change the world unilaterally through technological methods without having to spend all day convincing people and asking them for support,” he said at a conference.

Palantir, in addition to working for the US Government, also financed the Senate race of the current Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, in 2022. He worked with Peter Thiel before entering politics, so there is a great relationship between them.

The problem is that more and more CEOs have stopped believing in Silicon Valley as “that progressive space of liberal democracy and free markets” and now think that these companies “have to be the defenders of a country model,” he warned. The world order. These companies see that their role is no longer to help people, but to “defend and protect life.”

AI as savior of humanity

Now, with the emergence of artificial intelligence, these companies see it as the arrival of a new Jesus Christ. In fact, Peter Thiel has given lectures on Satanism in which he said that those who went against AI are the antichrist. “They are convinced that they are developing a technology that will take humanity to a better point and democracy has to take a backseat,” they noted.

What they are looking for is for people to invest in AI because “it will help us protect ourselves and it will reduce the structure of the State and make it more efficient and replace all those civil servants that they believe are a burden.” And all with the support of the federal government and what the administrations give them for their development.

Chijioke Obinna

I've been passionate about storytelling and journalism since my early days growing up in Lagos. With a background in political science and years of experience in investigative reporting, I aim to bring nuanced perspectives to pressing global issues. Outside of writing, I enjoy exploring Nigeria’s vibrant cultural scene and mentoring young aspiring journalists.