This is what happens when top leadership at A16Z like Marc Andressen [1], Ben Horowitz [1], Scott Kupor [2] (first VC at A16Z and now head of OPM - the agency that gives DOGE it's teeth), and Brian Quintenz [3] (head of policy (ie. Lobbying) at A16Z as Head of the CFTC) become major backers of the current administration.
A16Z has been lobbying for deregulating the Crypto industry and defanging the CFPB for half a decade now [4][5] as they have $4.5B dedicated in crypto investments alone [6], which were largely underwater [7]
People keep talking about the Dark Enlightenment Tech Bro schpeil, and while significant, is basically a bunch of blowhards. The primary reasons you saw significant VC support for the Trump administration are
1. the proposed tax on unrealized capital gains tax for those with a net worth above $100M (heavily hits VCs like A16Z, Founders Fund, and YC)
2. the SPAC crackdown (shut down a major venue to unlock capital from zombie investments)
3. Crypto deregulation (as explained above)
[0] - https://www.reuters.com/technology/trump-signs-order-establi...
[1] - https://techcrunch.com/2024/07/16/andreessen-horowitz-co-fou...
[2] - https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/sub-...
[3] - https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-plans-pick-brian-quin...
[4] - https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/29/us/politics/andreessen-ho...
[5] - https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidjeans/2022/10/17/andreesse...
[6] - https://www.axios.com/2022/05/25/andreessen-horowitz-raises-...
[7] - https://www.wsj.com/articles/andreessen-horowitz-went-all-in...