Over the past decade or so, there’s been a huge change on the world stage – one that involves billionaires, yet affects us all. Traditional changemakers such as media moguls and business leaders have been quietly - and in some cases, not so quietly - been pushed aside by tech entrepreneurs; who have taken their place as the most influential figures in global politics.
These new oligarchs, emanating from Silicon Valley, are successfully influencing policy, and the wider global conversation -and it’s worth paying attention to. Take Peter Thiel. He’s someone you might not have heard of, but you’ll probably be aware of his work both professionally, and in politics. Professionally, he’s co-founder of PayPal. In politics, he’s said to have been crucial in the selection of JD Vance as Donald Trump’s Vice-Presidential candidate. This is particularly significant, as it’s believed that Rupert Murdoch had been pushing for another candidate for that role, Doug Burgum. The fact Thiel won over such an historic powerbroker is not insignificant, and is a sign of a dramatic shift.
Perhaps the most influential - and controversial - of this new breed of powerbrokers is Elon Musk, the wildly successful billionaire behind electric vehicle brand Tesla, space exploration company SpaceX and social media platform Twitter, or X, if you follow his rebrand of the platform. Indeed, his purchase of Twitter involved sweeping cultural changes and job cuts, reshaping the platform into what he claims is a hub for free speech. Critics, on the other hand, claim he’s used the platform to advance partisan politics. Controversial figures such as self-proclaimed misogynist Andrew Tate and Katie Hopkins have been allowed to return to X from "permanent bans" handed down by the previous regime. False information shared on the platform has had devastating real world consequences, such as the riots seen in Southport.
Misinformation can influence elections too, and our attitude to things like climate change. Musk’s ownership of X gives him unprecedented influence; on top of his existing billions. It’s worth pointing out that his companies have used this money for lobbying and donations to candidates from both the Republican and Democrat parties in the approach; taking a savvy, pragmatic approach to tailoring public police. It’s also worth highlighting his influence in the war in Ukraine through the Starlink satellite system; and the fact he directly intervened in the conflict at one point by preventing it from being used in an attack on the Russian navy. He said he didn’t want his company to become directly involved in the war, a defence that Ukraine has been hugely critical of.
The trend of "tech oligarchs" isn’t limited to Thiel and Musk – one could point to OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Meta’s Mark Zuckerburg and Jeff Bezos of Amazon. The systems they have developed give them a new form of power that our political systems and society may not be ready for. It’s a fascinating but disturbing shift; and it’s one that will shape our future in ways we have limited control over.
Theo Tzanidis is Senior Lecturer in Digital Marketing at the University of the West of Scotland
Agenda is a column for outside contributors. Contact: agenda@theherald.co.uk
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