Peter Thiel Is Lobbying Billionaires to Ditch the Giving Pledge
Thiel says he privately urged about 12 signers to reverse their commitment to the Gates-Buffett philanthropy pact.
The Giving Pledge is losing its shine among tech's ultra-wealthy. Peter Thiel has revealed he privately approached roughly 12 signers of the famous philanthropic commitment, urging them to walk it back.
The pledge, championed by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, asks billionaires to commit the majority of their wealth to charitable causes. Buffett had personally courted signatures through a series of exclusive dinners across the country.
Now a growing faction of tech billionaires is souring on the whole concept. Thiel's quiet lobbying campaign represents the most visible sign yet of a backlash within Silicon Valley's elite against the pledge's underlying philosophy.
The revolt signals a deeper ideological shift among tech moguls — away from traditional philanthropy and toward a more skeptical stance on giving away vast fortunes. Whether the pledge can survive this pressure remains an open question.