Written by Theodore Schleifer, The New York Times
Compiled by: Luffy, Foresight News
The biggest donor in this round of US midterm elections is neither Elon Musk nor George Soros, nor any other billionaire with the most substantial wealth in politics.
The real top spot belongs to a venture capital firm: Andreessen Horowitz (abbreviated as a16z).
Top donors in this round of midterm elections. Data source: Federal Election Commission, The New York Times.
An analysis by The New York Times shows that this Silicon Valley venture capital firm, along with its founding partners Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, has donated more than $115 million in political contributions to midterm election-related activities, making it the largest known donor in this election cycle.
A16z's foray into politics is nothing new; its two founders are seasoned political donors with fortunes in the billions. However, this round of donations far exceeds the approximately $63 million donated during the 2024 election cycle. This top investment firm is increasing its political involvement at an unprecedented pace, attempting to influence policy direction and align with its own commercial interests.
Following the last election, a16z established its stance of long-term political involvement. Conventionally, the day after an election (two years before the next major election) is not typically a time for large-scale donations. However, on November 6, 2024, a16z injected over $23 million into two core Super PACs in the crypto industry, sending a clear signal: its political strategy is long-term, not a short-term fad.
a16z declined to comment on media interview requests and did not arrange for the two founders to be interviewed.
A few days later, Anderson stated bluntly in an election review podcast, "My conclusion is that we must treat political participation as a permanent mission." "Sometimes we go with the flow, and sometimes we have to fight for it. But regardless, we must be deeply involved throughout the entire process."
The massive political donations from venture capital firms reflect a significant shift in the American political landscape. In this round of midterm elections, the main donors have shifted from individual billionaires to corporations like a16z. Critics argue that this influx of institutional funds could sway the election process, solely for their own commercial gain.
Since the 2024 election, a16z has invested $47.5 million in Fairshake, a network of super PACs in the crypto industry. Its strategy has also extended beyond the crypto space: following the Fairshake model, it spearheaded the creation of Leading the Future, a super PAC focused on supporting pro-AI lawmakers, and has invested $50 million in it. Both Fairshake and Leading the Future employ a bipartisan strategy, funding both Republican and Democratic candidates.
In addition, a16z and its two founders donated a total of $12 million to MAGA Inc., a super PAC under Trump's administration, including a single donation of $6 million in March. That same month, a trust fund associated with Anderson also donated nearly $900,000 to the Republican National Committee.
A series of political investments also allowed Marc Andreessen to build close ties with the Trump administration.
The chart shows a dramatic surge in public political donations from Anderson and Horowitz: political donations from a16z and its founders have skyrocketed from $2 million in 2022 to $115.5 million in 2026; the funds are primarily flowing into artificial intelligence, the Republican Party, and the crypto industry.
Sources: Federal Election Commission, The New York Times
Before Trump began his second term last year, Anderson revealed that he spent half his time at Mar-a-Lago, assisting the Trump team with the transition of power. The venture capitalist also served as an informal advisor to Musk's Department of Government Efficiency. Two former a16z partners have joined the government as senior officials, one of whom is responsible for AI regulation.
In March of this year, 54-year-old Anderson was selected for the White House’s top technology advisory council; he was also recently invited to attend a dinner during King Charles III’s visit to the United States, as well as a private club dinner hosted by Trump in the White House Rose Garden.
Regulatory filings show that Anderson and Horowitz's large donations mostly came from a16z, a wholly owned organization. The $115.5 million for this election cycle does not include the tens of millions of dollars the organization recently invested in the emerging AI nonprofit advocacy group, the American Innovators Network, for which it is not required to disclose donation details.
Founded in 2009, a16z is one of Silicon Valley's most prestigious investment firms. It incubates startups using a model similar to Hollywood talent agencies, hiring aggressive individuals skilled at self-promotion. Its early investments in cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and social media platform Instagram solidified its industry reputation.
Both founders have interesting political stories. In the 1990s, Anderson rose to fame at a young age with the early browser Mosaic and became one of the wealthiest people. He was a core member of former US Vice President Gore's technology think tank and a major fundraiser for the Democratic Party.
Years later, his political stance gradually shifted to the right. He revealed that after Trump's victory in 2016, he deliberately withdrew from political fundraising activities and embarked on a "journey of self-reflection" on his political understanding, re-examining various extreme ideologies.
According to sources familiar with his private social life, Anderson is now active in various private communities and often discusses current events with conservative activists.
Horowitz, 59, is the son of David Horowitz, a well-known conservative opinion leader. However, sources say Horowitz himself rarely makes public political statements and has relatively limited involvement in super PAC affairs. He publicly endorsed Trump in the summer of 2024, and in October of the same year, he provided financial support to Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris due to personal connections.
Anderson and Horowitz publicly describe themselves as "single-issue voters," meaning they vote and donate solely based on whether it benefits tech startups. Sources indicate that their early clashes with the media and the Biden administration over tech policy solidified their commitment to deep political involvement.
Anderson once recounted an incident to a friend. About ten years ago, at the headquarters of Condé Nast, the parent company of The New Yorker, he had a dispute with the magazine's editor-in-chief, David Remnick. The other team accused tech elites of being out of touch with the masses and out of touch with reality. However, after touring their luxurious office and bathroom environment, Anderson concluded that it was the media elites who were truly out of touch with reality.
Ahead of the 2024 election, Chris Lehane, a veteran Silicon Valley political strategist and Coinbase board member, spearheaded the formation of Fairshake. Anderson and Horowitz believed that the Biden administration's stance on the crypto industry, in which a16z had a significant stake, was too harsh; coupled with the conviction of crypto political figure SBF for fraud, the industry urgently needed to explore a new political path.
Therefore, a16z, together with crypto giants such as Coinbase and Ripple, became a core funder of Fairshake, donating $47 million to the organization during the 2024 election cycle. Although most pro-crypto policies in Washington today stem from Trump (Fairshake did not endorse Trump), this political maneuver is still regarded by the industry as a successful attempt.
In the spring of 2025, Lehane, who had joined OpenAI, once again spearheaded a plan with a16z, tech investors, and political manipulators to replicate the political fundraising strategies of the crypto industry in the field of artificial intelligence, and made early arrangements and increased investment.
a16z, which has heavily invested in numerous projects in the artificial intelligence field, is making a full-fledged entry into the race. In August 2025, it donated $25 million to the AI political action committee Leading the Future, and in February 2026, it donated another $25 million. Sources familiar with the matter revealed that the organization has not yet decided whether to make further donations.
Compared to the hundreds of billions of dollars in assets managed by a16z, $115.5 million in political spending is not considered high. However, other leading venture capital firms in Silicon Valley, such as Sequoia Capital and Founders Fund, have not undertaken similar large-scale political investments.
According to statistics from The New York Times, since the 2024 election, the largest publicly disclosed federal donations after a16z are from Soros-affiliated organizations (approximately $103 million) and Musk ($85 million).
A16z's extensive political involvement has also led to numerous controversies and backlashes.
Internally, John O'Farrell, an early partner at the firm, resigned from his part-time advisory role last May due to political differences. He publicly criticized the two political action committees, Fairshake and Leading the Future, as well as what he called "tech people who actively pander to the current administration, including many former venture capitalists and partners," but declined to comment further.
Externally, the progressive camp has strongly criticized a16z. Last year, several Democratic lawmakers publicly criticized Arizona Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego for co-hosting a fundraising event with Anderson.
a16z's support for the AI political action committee Leading the Future has sparked industry checks and balances. In response, the opposing super PAC Public First, adhering to AI safety principles, was created to counterbalance the political funding influence of a16z and its allies. Insiders have even jokingly named the organization "z16a," deliberately reversing the colloquial abbreviation of a16z.
New York Democratic State Representative Alex Bores, who is running for Congress and has received endorsement from Public First, stated that he is not afraid of attacks from Leading the Future: "The logic of venture capital is to pursue rapid scaling, but this logic should not be used to buy democratic politics."
Some Republicans also disagree with a16z's political bets. They privately resent Fairshake and Leading the Future's adherence to bipartisan neutrality, arguing that policies regarding artificial intelligence and the crypto industry are inherently more Republican-friendly, and that their political action committees should fully align with the Republican Party.
Anderson and Horowitz told their allies that they had limited decision-making power in the two political action committees and rarely interacted directly with the committees’ management.
a16z's political strategy and lobbying efforts in Washington were overseen by former congressional aide and Republican Collin McCune. He closely monitored the movements of the two major political action committees and kept Anderson informed of the latest policy developments and political developments.
But this doesn't mean Anderson is ignorant of the rules of politics. In 2000, at the age of only 29, he asserted: "If you think political donations are already a lot, then you haven't seen the real scale."
