Peter Thiel

Here is a rewritten biography of Peter Thiel in fresh, original wording.

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Peter Andreas Thiel is a German-American billionaire known for his influence across technology, venture capital, and conservative politics. Born in Germany and raised in the United States, he first gained prominence as a co-founder of PayPal in the late 1990s, a digital payments company that reshaped online commerce. Following its sale to eBay, Thiel co-founded Palantir Technologies, a data analytics firm initially backed by the CIA that serves government and corporate clients. He also founded Founders Fund, a venture capital firm known for early bets on companies like SpaceX and Airbnb.

Thiel made a prescient $500,000 investment in Facebook in 2004, becoming the social network’s first outside investor—a stake that later grew to billions. His notable works include the book *Zero to One*, which distills his contrarian philosophy on startups and innovation. Among his achievements, Thiel has been a vocal advocate for seasteading, longevity research, and a fellowship program that pays young people to drop out of college and pursue entrepreneurial projects. His political activism, including high-profile support for Donald Trump and libertarian causes, has made him a polarizing but consequential figure in Silicon Valley and beyond.