America’s Frontier Fund: The Venture Capital Firm with Ties to Peter Thiel and Eric Schmidt

While Peter Thiel and Eric Schmidt fund opposing sides of the U.S. election, they are both invested in a venture capital firm with deep ties to U.S. intelligence and military.

Originally Published at The Last American Vagabond

Americans are increasingly becoming aware of the fact that the secretive Bilderberg Group is funding both sides of the 2024 Presidential Election, with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt going all in on Democratic Party candidate Kamala Harris, and Peter Thiel investing millions in support of Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump. Both Thiel and Schmidt are steering committee members of the Bilderberg Group.

While knowledge of this illusion of choice is spreading, the connections between Thiel and Schmidt — as well as other members of the Bilderberg Group — run deeper than surface level relationships. Rather, the intersection between the hidden ruling class represented at the Bilderberg meetings, and the Big Tech Technocrats, has immense influence on the U.S. government, U.S. military-intelligence at the highest levels, and, thus, the world in general.

One example of this incestuous relationship can clearly be seen at America’s Frontier Fund.

What is America’s Frontier Fund?

America’s Frontier Fund (AFF) describes itself as “the first investment platform committed to ensuring the United States remains the best place in the world for Frontier Technology innovation and investment returns”. The AFF operates as an investment fund and claims to have “assembled a world-class board of directors and a unique team of investors, scientists, technologists, and policy experts” dedicated to their pro-America vision.

Through their “Frontier Fund I” the AFF invests in domestic companies which align with their mission. They are also focused on “incubating” companies through their “national network of innovation hubs”.

AFF was first announced in May 2021, and has been described as a “for-profit investment fund housed within a nonprofit organization”. This will allow AFF to “leverage the assets of a for-profit business” while also obscuring its investors.

AFF is stacked with individuals with ties to the U.S. military, including Michèle Flournoy, former undersecretary of defense under President Barack Obama, former Secretary of Defense Ash Carter and H.R. McMaster, U.S. national security advisor at the Trump White House.

In May 2022, a leaked draft of the announcement on the creation AFF was obtained by the Tech Transparency Project. This draft shows that AFF originally described itself as the first “public-private, deep-tech fund” in the United States. The implication was that AFF would receive taxpayer funds via the U.S. government, as well as private money from investors.

When Vox inquired about the draft, AFF said it “was not approved and was never meant to be released. We do not describe ourselves that way. We only describe ourselves as a ‘non-profit deep tech fund.’”

AFF said that, up to that point, it had not yet received money from the government, but also noted that it had responded to a request for information from the Department of Commerce about a semiconductor fund. As Vox noted, this is often a first step in the process of receiving funding from the government.

The New York Times previously reported on AFF’s effort to ramp up U.S. manufacturing of semiconductors by having the U.S. taxpayer pay for the increased production. Semiconductors, sometimes referred to as chips, are a necessity in modern computing technology.

“We still don’t know exactly how AFF will be run,” Katie Paul, director of the Tech Transparency Project, told Vox. “But it seems highly unusual for a billionaire to establish a venture capital fund for the purpose of steering taxpayer money into private companies.”

Jack Poulson, executive director at nonprofit Tech Inquiry, also asked, “Where does the money come from?”.

Although they do not currently play a public role in AFF, both Peter Thiel and Eric Schmidt have donated to the nonprofit side of the organization. AFF told Vox that Schmidt is not on the board of directors and would have “no involvement” in investment decisions.

However, individuals with relationships with Schmidt are active members of AFF.

Jordan Blashek, AFF’s president and COO, was previously Vice President of Business Formation at Schmidt Futures, Eric Schmidt’s philanthropic outfit founded with his wife Wendy.

Eric Braverman serves on AFF’s board of directors, and, until August 2023, was the CEO at Schmidt Futures. Braverman also formerly served with the Clinton Foundation.

One of the major concerns regarding AFF and the connections between Schmidt and the U.S. government is that many individuals associated with AFF are also deeply connected to the U.S. government, venture capital firms, and tech startups. There is currently no publicly available information detailing what steps have been taken to prevent these individuals from profiting off their inside knowledge and their ability to influence U.S. government investments.

It’s not a far fetched idea to imagine Eric Schmidt or Peter Thiel using their influence over AFF to direct taxpayer funds towards startup companies in which they are invested.

For example, The New York Times has previously reported that Schmidt “invested millions of dollars into more than half a dozen defense startups”. The AFF draft press release said the “initial areas of focus include microelectronics, artificial intelligence, and advanced networks (5G/6G)”.

Each of these fields include startup companies which Schmidt has invested heavily in and would stand to benefit if AFF invests as well.

The In-Q-Tel Connection

Perhaps the most interesting connection between Schmidt, AFF, and U.S. intelligence is the appointment of Gilman Louie as the fund’s CEO. Louie is infamous for his role as the first CEO of In-Q-Tel, the CIA’s venture capital firm.

This relationship is not surprising given the close ties between Google — Eric Schmidt’s former company — and In-Q-Tel. In 2004, Google acquired Keyhole, Inc. for an undisclosed sum and used their technology to create Google Earth. Keyhole’s software was originally developed with funding from In-Q-Tel.

Eric Schmidt and In-Q-Tel continue to maintain a close relationship, if only through their mutual investments in startups. Schmidt is an investor and chair of Sandbox AQ, an AI company which has also received backing from In-Q-Tel in 2022. At the time of the investment, Steve Bowsher, president of In-Q-Tel, said he hoped Sandbox AQ would sell its tech to the U.S. government. The company had apparently spent weeks introducing its tech to eight U.S. intelligence agencies.

Peter Thiel’s own company Palantir Technologies Inc. also received two rounds of investment from In-Q-Tel totaling more than $2 million.

In-Q-Tel was not without its own conflicts of interest. According to a 2016 report in the Wall Street Journal, numerous individuals working for In-Q-Tel had financial connections with companies backed by the CIA.

Gilman Louie has previously told the NY Times that concern about Eric Schmidt’s influence on U.S. politics are misplaced. “If anything, we need more Eric Schmidts to get involved, not stand on the sidelines. We need more technologists who have influence,” Louie stated.

“I don’t need the government to give us permission to go save the country,” Louie said, echoing a common sentiment among Technocrats. “It’d be nice if they would help us.”

Gilman Louie was also one of 15 commissioners on the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI), where Schmidt was chair until 2021. For three years, Schmidt and the AI Commission provided policy recommendations to the U.S. government regarding how AI could promote American national security. The Department of Defense has adopted several of its recommendations. One of those recommendations was the creation of an organization much like AFF.

As TLAV previously reported, Schmidt’s influence on the U.S. government has been consistent throughout the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations.

Schmidt not only chaired the AI Commission, but he also chaired the Defense Innovation Board, an independent advisory that recommends new technologies which should be incorporated into the U.S. military. Schmidt was also appointed to the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology.

A 2019 ProPublica report detailed how the Department of Defense had become “unusually deferential to Schmidt” under former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis’s leadership.

Schmidt’s involvement with the private sector, and his numerous positions within the U.S. government highlight how he is positioned at a nexus of Big Tech and U.S. military and intelligence. His funding of, and connections to, AFF only further cement his influence over the U.S. government’s tech future.

International Influence

America’s Frontier Fund is not only focused on helping the U.S. maintain national security and dominance in the tech sector. They are also exerting international influence as part of the Quad Investor Network (QIN).

In May 2022, AFF announced that it would lead the QIN, which was described as an effort to “bring together leading technology investors, executives and founders from four democratic nations to strengthen cooperation”. Similar to AFF, the QIN will focus on investments in microelectronics, 5G/6G, quantum, advanced energy and materials, and biotechnology.

The QIN website states, “The QUIN brings together investors, corporations, and public institutions across India, Japan, Australia and the U.S. to support its mission.”

The Quad Investors Network is managed by an Operating Committee formed by in-country partners, including AFF, Invest India, and 21st Century Public Policy Institute, Japan Business Federation’s Think Tank.

Gilman Louie has stated that he hopes the QIN will propel other “global democracies” to invest in emerging technologies as well.

“To ensure that emerging technologies and supply chains advance democratic values and economic prosperity around the world, the United States must deepen its engagement with allies and partners,” Louie stated as part of the announcement. “We can still determine how these technologies impact our future—but only if we act now.”

With Technocrats like Eric Schmidt, Peter Thiel, and Gilman Louie involved in the funding and steering of America’s Frontier Fund it is likely that the fund will be a tool to expand the interests of the U.S. military and intelligence networks. Armed with billions of dollars, extensive connections to the aforementioned networks, and a Technocratic worldview, we should expect to see the influence of AFF for years to come.

Unfortunately, the average American is too distracted and divided to grapple with the reality that individuals with ties to the hidden Predator Class are, at minimum, playing a role in the U.S. government’s technological and military strategies.