Since 2015, Peter Thiel served as a part-time adviser to the startup accelerator Y Combinator. However, according to The Verge, the startup accelerator has parted ways with the entrepreneur. The company did not explain why they have cut ties. But, the company did issue a short statement at the top of a Y Combinator blog post introducing and welcoming Thiel two years ago that says ““Peter Thiel is no longer affiliated with Y Combinator.”
The news comes shortly after a Y Combinator was criticized for keeping Thiel as an adviser following the entrepreneur’s public support of Donald Trump during Trump’s presidential election. At the time, Y Combinator president Sam Altman defended keeping Thiel on the board tweeting that he was “not going to fire someone for supporting a major party nominee,” and while they disagree politically, “Diversity is painful but critical to the health of a democratic society.
Buzzed also reports that the part-time adviser program that Thiel had been part of had been shut down last year. Back then, Thiel joined Y Combinator along with Groupon’s Andrew Mason, Stripe’s Patrick Collison, and Homejoy’s Adora Cheung.
What is Y Combinator?
Launched in 2005, Y Combinator is a startup accelerator – a program that includes mentorship, and educational components to build a product that can be pitched during an event.
Y Combinator selects two batches of companies per year. The groups then receive funding, advice, and connections in exchange for 7% equity int he company. The program also includes office hours, where startup founders meet with investors. The motto of the start-up accelerator is to “Make Something People Want.”
Who is Peter Thiel?
Peter Thiel is a venture capitalist and has a reported net worth of $2.2 billion and is ranked number 315 on the Forbes 400. Thiel became Facebook’s first outside investor when he acquired a 10.2% stake in the company for $500,000 in 2004. He sold a majority of his shares in Facebook for over $1 billion in 2012 but remains on the board of directors.