At a confab on Capitol Hill last week, Silicon Valley titans concluded they need to lobby like Lockheed.
By Nick Cleveland-Stout, Responsible Statecraft
Silicon Valley’s elite traded hoodies for Hill passes last week and planted their flag in Washington.
During a nearly 12-hour marathon Hill and Valley Forum in the Capitol Building, star-studded venture capitalists, defense technologists, and allied policymakers congratulated themselves on the promising start to the military application of artificial intelligence and autonomous weapons in the era of Trump 2.
Jacob Helberg, co-founder of the annual forum and Trump’s pick for under secretary of state for economic growth, energy, and the environment, laid out the success story of Silicon Valley’s David-to-Goliath arc in his opening remarks.

“We have the best leader in the world. President Trump is objectively and truly a sample of one…The stars have aligned. We have the builders, we have the innovators, the policymakers and leaders for a reindustrialization revolution in this country to seize this American moment,” he declared.
Helburg forgot to credit one important group: the lobbyists. During coffee breaks outside the auditorium — where old friends caught up and West Coasters complained about the early start time — attendees explained that lobbyist insiders have been crucial in closing the daylight between would-be skeptics in government and Silicon Valley’s startups.
“It’s no mistake that there’s been an infusion of Silicon Valley acolytes in Washington DC the last 6 months,” said one founder of a venture capital firm invested in defense technology companies. “Silicon Valley is recognizing that lobbying is a key conduit to get things done and sell its message to three letter agencies.”
Venture capitalists are only now beginning to hire lobbyists. Since Trump’s victory in November, Andreessen Horowitz and his a16z venture capital firm snapped up contracts with BGR Government Affairs, Cornerstone Government Affairs, and Trump-connected Miller Strategies to advocate on “issues related to AI,” among other items. Other major venture capital firms, such as General Catalyst and Sequoia Capital, registered lobbyists for the first time just last year.
Recent Posts
Israel Is Losing Americans’ Support. Will Democrats Take Notice?
May 29, 2025
Take Action Now New polls show broad opposition to Israel’s genocide — and that Democrats’ intransigence on Gaza greatly reduced turnout…
Ukrainians Need (And Want) An End To War
May 28, 2025
Take Action Now It would be tragic to give up on negotiations now.By RJ Eskow, The Zero Hour Report Donald Trump’s expressed exasperation over…
Cuomo Hopes Phony Antisemitism Charges Can Beat Zohran Mamdani
May 28, 2025
Take Action Now Zohran Mamdani is closing the gap with Andrew Cuomo.By Theodore Hamm, Drop Site In the summer of 2024, Andrew Cuomo announced the…
How Bad Does It Have To Get Before The DNC Declares An Emergency?
May 28, 2025
Take Action Now The Democratic Party needs to respond with urgency to the threat Trump poses. What will it take for leadership to wake up?By…