Welcome to the Tech Meme Right Home for Tuesday, July 16th, 2024, I'm Brian McCullough.

Today, J.D. Vance becomes the first Tech industry player and especially venture capitalist

ever to be on a major presidential ticket.

It's never been easier for the cops to break into your phone.

Why are the major record label suing Verizon

and why an AI innovation around spreadsheets could be a big deal.

Here's what you miss today in the world of tech. Okay, you all know that I try to avoid politics on this show when and where I can.

I'll show you some of my thinking about this. Right now, at the top of Tech Meme, there's a big story about how Elon Musk apparently plans to commit around 45 million dollars per month

to America Pack, a new pro-Trump super pack. Other backers of that pack include 8 VCs Joe Lonsdale and the Winklevoss

Twins and the information this morning is reporting that Mark Andresen and Ben Horwitz have told

A16 Z staffers in recent days that they plan to make large

donations to Pex supporting Donald Trump. Which okay those are big names in

tech and there's the crypto angle here too the crypto community

Seemingly believes Trump would be friendlier to their interests so people in the crypto world can look at this as a form of lobbying I guess and with Elon an angle could be you know

owners of major social media platforms at least try to appear a political

because if you become political you risk angering what at least 50% of your user base but in the end on things

like that I come down on this is a case of those people's personal

political beliefs so probably not worth adjudicating. It is a free country, have whatever political

beliefs you want. But in the case of Donald Trump picking J.D. Vance as his vice presidential

running mate, I think we have to talk about it.

Why? Well, because Vance is a former venture capitalist.

He comes from the tech industry.

...