During an interview on the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, Jessica Lessin offered an insider’s take on several of Silicon Valley’s most colorful characters. Lessin, founder and CEO of the business and technology news site The Information, joined hosts Joanna Coles and Samantha Bee for a conversation on the state of tech—and tech bros.
“It’s revenge of the nerds again,” Lessin said. “I say revenge of the nerds, you know, with some fondness because nerds can be charming too… And I think they certainly have a little more swagger in the Valley these days.”
Addressing Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg’s newfound love of streetwear, Lessin diplomatically described the makeover as “Mark unleashed.”
Lessin also touched on “wild card” Elon Musk, who she pointed to as the Valley bro likely to wield the most influence over the 2024 presidential election.
But power doesn’t always mean popularity. Although he’s still admired in the industry for his business success, Lessin did note that “people are a little bit tired of the shtick.”
Musk’s full-throated endorsement of Donald Trump—which has extended to his recent appearance at a Trump rally decked out in “Dark MAGA” merch—“was a surprise,” Lessin said, but “in hindsight, it makes sense given the tension with the Biden administration.”
(Musk has previously sparred with the president over electric vehicles and tariffs on Chinese cars, among other topics.)
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Also surprising, Lessin noted, was venture capitalist Ben Horowitz’s reversal on his own Trump endorsement. Though Horowitz and his wife are friends with Kamala Harris, he had announced in July that he would back Trump. His business partner, Marc Andreessen, also endorsed Trump.
But when Joe Biden stepped down from the race and Harris was announced as the Democratic nominee days later, the situation became “awkward,” Lessin said. Horowitz changed course last week and said he and his wife would personally make a “significant” donation to Harris.
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