As two of Silicon Valley’s business mogul Peter Thiel's business ventures come into question, the PayPay founder finds himself moving out of the tech bubble to reflect and gain clarity on his investments.
"It’s been a crazier two years than I would have thought," Thiel said to The New York Times.
Two of the business man's troubles lie on President Donald Trump, who he supported and backed for president, and Facebook, who has recently been put in question in the wake of the Russian revelations.
Thiel has been a known supporter of Trump since the 2016 elections, even speaking at the 2016 Republican National Convention. The feeling was mutual, as it was also rumored that at one point, the president wanted to put him on the Supreme Court.
Now, a couple of years later, Thiel told The New York Times that things are not the way he thought they'd be with Trump in the Oval Office. However, though the two don’t talk very often, he "can get access anytime" he wants.
"There are all these ways that things have fallen short," Mr. Thiel said. But he said he had no regrets about his endorsement. "It’s still better than Hillary Clinton or the Republican zombies," he said, referring to the other candidates.
Russia's involvement with Trump's election has been a topic of conversation since he became president, and now, Facebook is believed to have been part of the ordeal.
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The social network was used by Russians to undermine democracy and sow confusion in the United States, according to The New York Times.
"Remember when Trump said the election was going to be rigged? People said that was crazy — 'How dare you question the integrity of the electoral process?' That was the view of most of the people working at Facebook, too," he said to The New York Times. "They did not think things were so hackable. It was a mistake, but an understandable mistake."
Thiel was Facebook’s first outside investor, buying 10 percent of the company when it was just a year old but sold his holdings in 2012 when the company went public.
"Network effects are very positive things, but there's a tipping point where they fall over into the madness of crowds," he said to The New York Times.
Thiel is moving out of San Francisco to Los Angeles with the hopes of gaining clarity outside Silicon Valley.
