Chamath Palihapitiya

Chamath Palihapitiya (born 3 September 1976) is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian-American venture capitalist and entrepreneur. He is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Social Capital, and previously served as an early senior executive at Facebook from 2007 to 2011. Palihapitiya is known for his venture capital investments, work with Special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), his minority ownership in the Golden State Warriors, and as a co-host of the business and technology podcast '' All-In''.

Early life and education

Born in Sri Lanka to a family from Galle, Palihapitiya moved to Canada at age five when his father was posted to the High Commission of Sri Lanka in Ottawa. In 1986, when his father's diplomatic posting came to an end, the family sought asylum in Canada due to his father's criticism of violence against Tamils during the Sri Lankan Civil War.

Growing up in difficult economic circumstances, Palihapitiya's father struggled with alcoholism and unemployment while his mother worked housekeeping jobs. At age 14, Palihapitiya began working at Burger King to support his family. He attended Lisgar Collegiate Institute and later graduated from the University of Waterloo in 1999 with a degree in electrical engineering.

Career

1999–2007: Early career

After graduation, Palihapitiya worked as a derivatives trader at BMO Nesbitt Burns before joining Winamp in California. Following AOL's acquisition of Winamp, he became AOL's youngest vice president, heading its instant messaging division in 2004. He briefly worked at Mayfield Fund before joining Facebook in 2007.

2007–2011: Facebook

At Facebook, Palihapitiya led the release of Facebook Beacon, an advertising system which failed and became the subject of lawsuits. Palihapitiya next focused on new user growth; after four years, Facebook had 1 billion users. Before leaving Facebook, Palihapitiya led the Facebook Phone and Facebook Home projects.

Steven Levy wrote in ''Facebook: The Inside Story'' that Palihapitiya was regarded as a "bully" at Facebook, and that his subordinates often cried as a result of his bullying.

2011–present: Social Capital

After leaving Facebook, Palihapitiya founded Social Capital, with his then-wife. The firm initially operated as a traditional venture capital fund, investing in companies including Yammer (acquired by Microsoft for $1.2B), SecondMarket, Slack (acquired by Salesforce for $27B), Swarm (acquired by SpaceX), Groq, and Box. By 2015, the fund managed over $1.1 billion in assets.

In 2018, Social Capital underwent significant changes, transitioning from a multi-LP venture capital fund to a family office structure. Since then, Social Capital has made investments in three areas: climate science, life sciences, and biotechnology, and the decentralization of the digital economy through platforms such as blockchain, crypto, and digital assets. Palihapitiya manages from a balance sheet of permanent capital.

Palihapitiya has become a prominent figure in the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) movement. Notable deals include taking Virgin Galactic public in 2019, Opendoor in 2020, and later SoFi and Clover Health.

Political positions and activities

While historically a Democratic Party donor, contributing approximately $1.3 million over a decade, he has recently shifted toward Republican support.

In 2011, Palihapitiya donated $7,500 to U.S. Senate candidate Ted Cruz. In March 2020, Palihapitiya told ''The New York Times'' that he would like to see Michael Bloomberg at the top of the Democratic ticket in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, paired with Amy Klobuchar or Elizabeth Warren. In 2023, he hosted a $50,000-per-plate fundraiser for presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, and in 2024, co-hosted a $12 million Trump fundraiser with his All-In Podcast co-host David O. Sacks in San Francisco. He was a co-host, along with Jacqueline Sacks, David Sacks's wife, of the fundraising event, which raised $12 million and was held on 6 June 2024 at Sacks's Pacific Heights home.

Previously, in early 2021, he briefly considered running in the California gubernatorial recall election before withdrawing from consideration.

Immigration reform and policy advocacy

Palihapitiya was listed as one of the "Founders" of the lobbying group FWD.us. The group launched on 11 April 2013, and its goals include immigration reform, improving education, and enabling technological innovation, all in a United States context. An article in ''The New Republic'' stated that Palihapitiya received a weekly report about FWD.us and also quoted him as saying, in response to controversy around the FWD.us political lobbying strategy: "The folks that are actually people that run that day to day are sophisticated and understand the nuances of how to affect it... It's a really gnarly, gnarly thing having to deal with Washington. And to be honest with you, my perspective was, it's a really good investment because it's a good way to pay it forward, and I'm really glad there are other people other than me who are dealing with it who have the patience and resolve to figure it out."

San Francisco inequality and housing controversy

At Bloomberg's ''Next Big Thing'' conference in Sausalito, California, Palihapitiya made remarks critical of San Francisco's then mayor, Ed Lee, and proposed that the city provide subsidized housing to low-income residents funded by an equity tax on startups, with the tax-and-subsidy schemes potentially restricted to particular zones of the city. This led to a heated debate between Palihapitiya and super angel Ron Conway. Conway, a supporter of Lee, defended the city's policies, argued that things would get better for all residents, and noted that Palihapitiya lives in Palo Alto rather than in the city. In a later clarification to ''TechCrunch'', Palihapitiya outlined his vision in more detail and described how his views on inequality and social mobility were shaped by his experience growing up with poor immigrant parents in Canada.

Social media

In 2017, Palihapitiya sparked discussion about social media's societal impact, drawing from his experience at Facebook. He argued that while social platforms could be "a force for good," their design created "dopamine-driven feedback loops" that could harm social discourse and behavior. This perspective extends to his personal life, where he actively limits his children's screen time and social media exposure, emphasizing direct engagement over technological dependence.

California gubernatorial campaign

On 25 January 2021, Palihapitiya announced he would challenge incumbent California Governor Gavin Newsom in the event Newsom was recalled. If elected, Palihapitiya said he would cut the state income tax rate from 16 to 0 percent, provide free education vouchers, allow for a two thousand dollar credit for every child born in California, and work to make California the center of climate and technology jobs. He shared a campaign website that was created by a supporter.

In February 2021, however, Palihapitiya declared he would not run for governor.

Comments on persecution of Uyghurs in China

In January 2022, Palihapitiya said on the '' All-In'' podcast to co-host Jason Calacanis that the alleged persecution of Uyghurs in China does not concern him:

Nobody cares about what's happening to the Uyghurs, okay. You bring it up because you care and I think it's nice that you care. The rest of us don't care. I'm just telling you a very hard, ugly truth. Of all the things that I care about, yes, it is below my line.

Palihapitiya said he and most Americans care more about domestic economic issues than the human rights abuses of China's Uyghur minority. In response, the Golden State Warriors issued a statement saying that Palihapitiya "does not speak on behalf of our franchise, and his views certainly don't reflect those of our organization." Palihapitiya later apologized for these comments in a tweet, stating that he recognized he came across as "lacking empathy" and that "To be clear, my belief is that human rights matter, whether in China, the United States, or elsewhere. Full stop."

Investments and philanthropy

In 2010, Palihapitiya acquired a 10% stake in the Golden State Warriors; he sold his stake in the team in June 2023. Palihapitiya has donated consistently to his alma mater, the University of Waterloo, including a $25 million donation to the engineering department in 2018. In 2021, he donated $7 million to provide clean drinking water to 1,000 families in California's Central Valley through hydropanels technology.

Personal life

After graduating from the University of Waterloo, Palihapitiya followed his future wife Brigette Lau to California. They had three children before divorcing in 2018. He later married Nathalie Dompé, an Italian business executive, in 2023. They have two children together.

An accomplished poker player, Palihapitiya has competed in both World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour events, with total winnings of $175,801. In 2011, he placed 101st out of 6,865 entries in the WSOP Main Event.

Palihapitiya purchased a $75 million Bombardier Global 7500 in 2020.

See also

* List of University of Waterloo people

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Palihapitiya, Chamath
1976 births
Living people
American billionaires
American people of Sri Lankan descent
American venture capitalists
Bank of Montreal people
Canadian expatriates in the United States
Canadian people of Sri Lankan descent
Lisgar Collegiate Institute alumni
Facebook employees
Silicon Valley people
Sri Lankan emigrants to Canada
University of Waterloo alumni