Peter Thiel | Entrepreneur

Overview

Peter Thiel (born 11 October 1967) is a tech entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and political influencer whose ideas have helped define Silicon Valley’s evolution and America's digital-age power players. Co-founder of PayPal and Palantir, and the first outside investor in Facebook, Thiel is known for his sharp intellect, libertarian views, and contrarian takes on progress, globalization, and innovation. His work spans finance, surveillance tech, AI, and political disruption—making him one of the most culturally and structurally impactful figures in 21st-century power circles.

Timeline

1967 – Born in Frankfurt, West Germany; immigrates to the U.S. as an infant.

1985 – Graduates valedictorian from San Mateo High School.

1989 – Earns B.A. in Philosophy from Stanford University; founds The Stanford Review

1992 – Completes J.D. from Stanford Law School; briefly clerks and works at Sullivan & Cromwell.

1993–1996 – Works in derivatives trading; begins articulating anti-globalist, pro-sovereignty ideas.

1998 – Co-founds Confinity with Max Levchin to develop digital encryption and payments systems.

1999 – Confinity merges with Elon Musk’s X.com, forming PayPal.

2000 – Survives dot-com bust by shifting focus to powering eBay transactions.

2002 – PayPal acquired by eBay for $1.5B; Thiel earns ~$55M and seeds the “PayPal Mafia.”

2003 – Co-founds Palantir Technologies with support from In-Q-Tel (CIA venture arm).

2004 – Invests $500K in Facebook for 10.2% and joins its board.

2005 – Launches Clarium Capital, a global macro hedge fund.

2008 – Clarium peaks at ~$8B AUM, then suffers losses during the financial crisis.

2009 – Launches Thiel Fellowship, giving $100K to young people to skip college and build companies.

2010 – Begins public lectures that form the basis of Zero to One philosophy.

2011 – Palantir gains traction with U.S. military, ICE, and police departments.

2012 – Invests in SpaceX and other future-forward ventures through Founders Fund.

2014 – Publishes Zero to One with Blake Masters; it becomes a tech-industry staple.

2015 – Increases political donations, exploring conservative-libertarian realignment.

2016 – Endorses Donald Trump, speaks at the Republican National Convention, donates $1.25M.

2017 – Leaves Silicon Valley for Los Angeles, citing political and cultural intolerance.

2018 – Palantir faces controversy over contracts with law enforcement and ICE.

2019 – Advocates for stronger ties between U.S. government and tech founders.

2020 – Serves as informal advisor to Trump White House on tech and defense issues.

2021 – Funds populist-right candidates like J.D. Vance and Blake Masters with tens of millions.

2022 – Steps down from Meta (Facebook) board after 17 years to focus on political projects.

2023 – Keeps a lower public profile.

2024–2025 – Continues to shape the future of defense, data, and ideology from behind the scenes; remains a bridge between elite tech, state security, and populist political energy.