Thiel initially supported Carly Fiorina campaign during the 2016 GOP presidential primary elections . After Fiorina dropped out , Thiel supported Donald Trump and became one of the pledged California delegates for Trump 's nomination at the 2016 Republican National Convention . He was also a headline speaker during the convention , during which he announced that he was " proud to be gay , " for which the assembled Republicans cheered . On October 15 , 2016 , Thiel announced a $ 1.25 million donation in support of Donald Trump 's presidential campaign . Thiel stated to '' The New York Times '' : " I did n't give him any money for a long time because I did n't think it mattered , and then the campaign asked me to . " After Trump 's victory , Thiel was named to the executive committee of the President-elect 's transition team
2016 Republican National Convention
2016 Republican National Convention
Peter Thiel