Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and Inflection AI, expressed his expectations for the incoming Trump administration in an op-ed for the Financial Times. Hoffman also seems hopeful that President-elect Donald Trump will be able to pave the way for increased competition and faster innovation in the technology industry, but he also believes that President-elect Donald Trump will be able to pave the way for increased competition and faster innovation in the technology industry. , also expressed concern that it could harm U.S. innovation.
Among the people Mr. Hoffman has his hand in some of the tech pies that could come with Mr. Trump's victory are the CEOs of Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, The Boring Company, Elon Musk is also the owner of Neuralink and X. Along with Vivek Ramaswamy, Musk will also head a proposed advisory committee called the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Hoffman said Musk's ownership in xAI in particular is a “significant conflict of interest.”
“Using his position to award government contracts to xAI, encourage federal agencies to unfairly target AI companies, and impose new regulations restricting exports is “It would come at the cost of America's technological, economic, and cultural security and competitiveness,” Hoffman wrote.
Tesla, SpaceX, and Neuralink are all highly regulated sectors, and the agencies that oversee them could be subject to firings or other repercussions for Musk's work at DOGE. .
Hoffman, who supported the nomination of Vice President Kamala Harris and has been an outspoken critic of Trump's presidency, also highlighted the potential benefits and drawbacks of President Trump's support for cryptocurrencies. He said that “ending the arbitrary coercive policies against the crypto industry” seen under the Biden administration could create “a more stable environment for blockchain innovation.” However, he questioned whether President Trump would “newly embrace virtual currencies and use his regulatory authority as a means of privileging a small number of favored coins.”
President Trump owns his own cryptocurrency venture, World Liberty Financial, with a native token that he launched in October, and is reportedly working on developing a new stablecoin to serve as a stand-in for the U.S. dollar. It is being This week, there were reports that the president-elect's social media company Trump Media is in talks to acquire the cryptocurrency trading platform Bakkt.
Hoffman's fears that Trump will be the favorite are not unfounded. As he wrote in his article, President Trump's first term “targeted many iconic American companies for personal and political reasons, creating constant chaos and uncertainty.”
For example, President Trump has frequently criticized Amazon and its CEO Jeff Bezos, accusing the company of unfairly profiting from USPS fees, which led to policies that scrutinized Amazon's transactions. Mr. Bezos, who owns the Washington Post, is now following Mr. Trump's lead, defending Mr. Trump's decision for the paper to withhold its support for Ms. Harris.
Musk is also known for publicly challenging and criticizing competitors and people with whom he disagrees. His path to acquiring Twitter (now X) was littered with public criticism of the platform's leadership and business model.
Mr. Hoffman helped fund E. Jean Carroll's rape lawsuit against Mr. Trump, criticized Mr. Trump as a “convicted felon and a pathological liar,” and accused the president-elect of having business ties with Mr. Trump. The event ended on a positive note, despite concerns expressed that he would retaliate. His skepticism.
“President Trump is committed to building a nation that enables American entrepreneurship and innovation, raises wages for workers, and where all Americans are free to pursue their ambitions with dignity, purpose, and belonging,” said Hoffman. I strongly hope that it will be a huge success.” “That's why I'm committed to building the next generation of companies that deliver life-changing opportunities for individuals and society.”