On Monday, former President Donald Trump chose Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) as his vice presidential nominee. Vance was a protégé of Peter Thiel, a prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist. His nomination to the Republican ticket is the latest sign of the rightward shift occurring among Silicon Valley’s elite.

Silicon Valley has historically been to the left of center in politics. During the early days of the tech industry’s start-up boom, many companies and businessmen cultivated close relationships with the Democratic Party. In 2007, former Sen. Al Gore joined Kleiner Perkins, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm. During the years that followed, many tech companies hired officials from the Obama administration to ensure they stayed in Democrats’ good graces.

But this bet did not play out in the way many Silicon Valley moguls expected. Technology start-ups did flourish, as the industry grew eightfold from 2012 to 2022. But following the 2016 presidential election, many Democrats blamed tech companies for Donald Trump’s victory. This growing skepticism of Big Tech was the first step in shifting technology moguls away from Democrats.

While many Silicon Valley founders and investors are not instinctually conservative, they have bristled at the attacks on meritocracy from the Democratic Party’s left wing. Their optimistic vision of technology and their admiration of success have led them to resent the Democratic Party’s suspicion of wealthy individuals and large, powerful corporations. One example of these grievances is Silicon Valley’s opposition to President Joe Biden’s Federal Trade Commission chairwoman, Lina Khan. She has aggressively blocked large corporate acquisitions, hurting venture capitalists in the process.

Thiel was the earliest notable supporter of the Republican Party among the Silicon Valley moguls. He spoke in support of Trump at the Republican National Convention in 2016. He was eventually disappointed in the results of the Trump presidency and declared he wouldn’t financially support Republicans in 2024, but his rightward influence has been felt throughout the industry.

First, there was the turn away from the Democratic Party and Biden. Earlier this year, Thiel, Elon Musk, and other notable Silicon Valley venture capitalists attended an “anti-Biden” dinner.

Beyond a skepticism of Democrats, there has been movement toward the Republican Party. Following the assassination attempt on Saturday, Musk endorsed Trump and promised to give $45 million per month to a pro-Trump super PAC. Other notable investors have made unprecedented donations to the Republican Party and GOP candidates during this election cycle.

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But this rightward shift has its own challenges, as embodied in Vance. While Vance worked in the venture capital world and made valuable connections there, his populist-right approach to economics goes against Silicon Valley’s priorities. This is seen in his positive remarks about Khan and his skepticism of Big Tech’s control over information. These tensions have yet to be worked out and may mean Silicon Valley will end up unsatisfied once again.

The nomination of Vance on Monday signals both the rise of Silicon Valley and the looming Republican intraparty confrontation over the state’s hand in the economy. In the future, it will be important to keep note of how Vance and his old friends from Silicon Valley navigate their relationship.