The dark side of Silicon Valley: Tech Elites vs. Democracy
Date
Thu, Nov 13, 2025
Admission
6:30 PM
Start
7:00 PM
End
9:00 PM
Promoter
Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung e.V.
Speakers
Francesca Bria, Aya Jaff, Tim Klüssendorf, Rainer Mühlhoff, Sina Laubenstein
What's Left? 2025
Since Donald Trump's return to the White House, the United States has been changing rapidly. One worrying development is the growing political influence of tech billionaires such as Elon Musk. But it is not only individuals who are gaining global influence; ideologies that have taken root in Silicon Valley in recent years are also becoming more powerful. What ideas and ideologies drive Silicon Valley and billionaires such as Musk and Peter Thiel? What are the ideological links between tech capital and the new right? What dangers does this alliance pose for democracy? And what can we do to counter it? The Friedrich Ebert Foundation wants to discuss these questions with you and prominent voices from philosophy, society and politics – including Francesca Bria, Aya Jaff, Tim Klüssendorf and Rainer Mühlhoff.
With the series ‘What's Left?’, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, together with the AK Philosophy of Social Democracy, has been asking since 2018 about a contemporary left-wing social utopia: What does ‘left-wing’ actually mean today?
Speakers
Francesca Bria
Head of the EuroStack Initiative on Europe’s Digital Sovereignty (Mercator Foundation)
Aya Jaff
Tech expert and publicist
Tim Klüssendorf
Secretary General of the SPD and Member of the German Parliament
Rainer Mühlhoff
Professor, Department of Philosophy, University of Osnabrück
Sina Laubenstein
ISD Germany