Peter Thiel

Peter Thiel is an American entrepreneur, investor, and hedge fund manager. He is arguably the most well-known venture capitalist in Silicon Valley and is renowned for his tech investments and backing of successful startups. He is best known as the founder of Paypal, the online payment system, and more recently, the venture capital firm, Founders Fund.

Thiel was born in Frankfurt, Germany in 1967 and raised in Foster City, California. He graduated from Stanford University in 1989 with a degree in philosophy and political science. After graduation, Thiel moved to California to pursue his career in law. After earning his law degree, he practiced law for two years and then began investing in startups with the Founders Fund, the venture capital firm he created in 2005.

Thiel has invested in multiple successful startups, including LinkedIn, Facebook, and Airbnb. He was also an early investor in SpaceX, and in 2017, he took a seat on the Board of Directors. Thiel is currently one of the wealthiest people in the world, and his net worth is estimated to be around $2 billion.

Thiel is also an author. He wrote Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future. In the book, Thiel argues for the power of technology to build new and greater businesses and encourages entrepreneurs to take risks and think differently to make the most of opportunities. He also covers topics such as competition, technological disruption, finance, and international trade.

Beyond venturing, Thiel also co-authored The Diversity Myth: Multiculturalism and Political Intolerance on Campus in 1995. In it, he critiques the political correctness of the modern campus and discusses how policies of “multiculturalism” actually increase political intolerance.

Thiel is also the author of The Ascent of Man, which chronicles the philosophical development of society through the rise of science and technology. In the book, Thiel offers his views on the future of science, philosophy, and technology.

Thiel’s impact on the tech world is undeniable, and his books provide great insight into his thought process. Every tech entrepreneur or investor should at least be familiar with his work. Through his books, one can gain a better understanding of Thiel’s unique perspective on business and innovation.