BERLIN / LONDON (IT BOLTWISE) – In the tech industry, it is often assumed that left-wing ideologies and the pursuit of rapid growth are incompatible. But there are examples of founders who successfully combine social justice and capitalism. This debate is further fueled by the different definitions of ‘left’ in the US and Europe.
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There is a widespread assumption in the tech industry that left-wing ideologies and the pursuit of rapid growth are incompatible. This idea was recently addressed in a LinkedIn post by Johann Nordhus Westarp, a founding partner of Lucid Capital. Westarp argued that the behaviors that characterize successful founders are often at odds with left-wing instincts. While successful founders aggressively sell and seek profits, leftists often view such behavior as exploitation or greed.
Check Warner, CEO of Ada Ventures, disagrees with this view and emphasizes that there are numerous examples of successful companies that combine liberal values with support for capitalism and growth. Warner argues that the mechanics of entrepreneurship, such as hard selling and risk-taking, are not inherently right-wing, but are simply the fundamentals of entrepreneurship.
Part of the confusion stems from the different definitions of ‘left’ in the US and Europe. In the United States, businesspeople are sometimes called communists if they support the Democratic Party or support issues such as abortion rights or renewable energy. In Europe, however, these issues are often considered centrist or even conservative. Nick Mulder, founder of the Berlin-based proptech company Hypofriend, notes that many founders would describe themselves as left-wing on social issues, while being very right-wing in their business activities.
A survey of 250 British founders found that a third of them would vote for an explicitly right-wing party in an election, while 16% would prefer the Liberal Democrats and 10% the Labor Party. David Houghton, founder of Social Mobility Ventures, emphasizes that the idea that you can’t be a left-wing founder is a myth imported largely from the noisy US tech culture. Houghton argues that starting a business is a tool, not a worldview. Many of the most impressive founders he meets are progressive in their instincts and want to improve systems that are unfair or inefficient.
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