That’s why the super-rich are invariably surrounded by fawning sycophants – and also why they eventually come to believe that they themselves are geniuses.
But since he is the only public intellectual that the tech industry has produced, there is a widespread belief that he must also be a deep thinker, which is why organisations ask him to give “keynote” speeches.
The function of such addresses is to give an elevated tone to what are otherwise sordid proceedings, which explains why Thiel was invited to address the 2022 bitcoin conference in Miami, which was billed as “a four-day pilgrimage for those seeking greater freedom and individual sovereignty”.
And, according to his biographer, much of his wealth comes from his skill at finding clever ways to limit his tax exposure: his investments in Facebook, Palantir and some others were made through a vehicle known as a Roth IRA that was originally intended for “ordinary” people – ie middle-class taxpayers.
And he’s using his money to try to change the balance of power in the deadlocked US Senate in the next round of congressional elections by giving two $10m donations to the Super Pacs that are backing two of his proteges, JD Vance and Arizona Republican Blake Masters.