--- title: "Hakeem Jeffries Is Bankrolled by the Most Controversial Tech Companies in Existence" description: "The incoming House speaker's blue-wave mandate will be no match for the Democrat's powerful tech industry allies." date: "2026-11-04" modified: "2026-11-04" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins.md" url: "https://futurism.com/future-society/hakeem-jeffries-donors-corporate-controversial-tech-companies" categories: - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" --- # Hakeem Jeffries Is Bankrolled by the Most Controversial Tech Companies in Existence ![Congressman Hakeem Jeffries speaks during his community inauguration.]() *lev radin / Shutterstock* The so-called "bluenami" that swept across the US on Tuesday is already hitting the breakwater. With Democrats seizing a firm majority in the House along with the Senate, longtime party loyalist Hakeem Jeffries is poised to take up the mantle as speaker. But for all the progressive excitement around the bruising beatdown delivered to Donald Trump and the Republican party, Jeffries' own backers include some of the most notorious power players in the tech industry, setting up immediate tension with voters who rallied around an [anti-Silicon Valley message]() to push the Democrats back into power. As collated by the [investigative publication *Sludge*](), Jeffries has a lengthy history of groveling to some of the most divisive tech and weapons corporations on the planet. His donor list includes controversial figures like Anduril CEO Brian Schimpf and his COO Matthew Grimm, who together spent nearly $150,000 boosting Jeffries' fundraising committees. Some might recognize Anduril as the AI weapons tech corporation co-founded by Palmer Luckey, a tech billionaire whose recent projects include a company working on [genetically enhanced dogs]() for military purposes. Another controversial donor includes Mehdi Allhassani, current head of government affairs at the [AI surveillance company Palantir](), from whom Jeffries received $44,300 this election cycle. Jeffries also has the backing of cryptocurrency advocacy groups and investment executives at firms including Bain Capital, DE Shaw, and Renaissance Technologies, *Sludge* reports. Beyond the incoming speaker, we know that the ultra-powerful tech industry lobbied [Republicans and Democrats alike]() in the runup to the midterm elections. In fact, [tech spending on the recent elections]() eclipsed any other private industry political funding in modern US history — emblematic of the fact that both ruling parties are, first-and-foremost, pro-business. As lawyer and political consultant Briahna Joy Gray [wrote on social](), when it comes time to pander to the country's supremely powerful corporate class, Republicans and Democrats are "two wings of the same bird." "The same corporate donors give to both sides," Gray observed, "so they win regardless of electoral outcomes." **More on US politics:** *[Political Candidates Spending An Obscene Amount of Money on AI-Generated Election Slop]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]() ## More - [Poll Finds Overwhelming Majority Disgusted by Trump’s Relationship With AI Industry, Saying He’s Using the Tech to Tear Down Democracy]() - [AI Companies Are Trying to Seize Control of Elections]() - [Democrats Warned Not to Upset Multi-Million Dollar AI Lobbyists, Even Though It’d Be a Slam Dunk With Voters]() - [Political Operatives Say AI Is Poised to Upend the Two-Party System]() - [Data Centers Are Driving Conservative Rural Voters to The Democratic Party En Masse]() - [Did Haley Stevens Use AI to Write Her Blog Post About Her Controversial Endorsement?]() - [New York Becomes First State to Ban AI Data Centers]() - [Sam Altman Makes Weird Tweet After Bruising Midterm Results]()