http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/16/technology/peter-thiel-donald-j-trump.html 2016-10-16 04:07:04 Peter Thiel to Donate $1.25 Million in Support of Donald Trump The billionaire investor, the only prominent supporter of the Republican candidate in the tech community, joins a very short list of large Trump contributors. === SAN FRANCISCO — Peter Thiel, true to his reputation as the most contrarian soul in Silicon Valley, is doubling down on The only prominent supporter of the Republican candidate in the high-tech community, Mr. Thiel is making his first donation in support of Mr. Trump’s election. He will give $1.25 million through a combination of The donation puts the billionaire investor high on a very short list of big Trump contributors. One of the biggest donors is Robert Mercer of the hedge fund Renaissance Technologies. He and his daughter Rebekah Mercer have given $15.5 million in support of the Republican candidate’s election, according to the Mr. Thiel, who spoke at the A spokesman for Mr. Thiel declined to comment. A spokesman for Mr. Trump did not immediately respond to a message for comment. The technology world has kept its wallet shut regarding Mr. Trump. By one accounting, the Trump campaign The candidate and Silicon Valley began on a bad note, with Mr. Trump lashing out at Amazon, Apple and other large companies. His position on immigration is the opposite of the tech industry’s, and he has shown little interest in other issues important to entrepreneurs. A meeting this month between tech industry advisers and Trump advisers was largely considered a bust. Silicon Valley has been forced to confront its lack of diversity in recent years, which would make support of Mr. Trump especially problematic. Brian Krzanich, the chief executive of Intel, had planned to hold a fund-raiser for Mr. Trump in June, but hours after the event became public, Mr. Thiel, 49, emigrated from Germany as a child. He co-founded PayPal and At the convention, Mr. Thiel sounded a populist tone rarely heard among entrepreneurs. “Across the country, wages are flat. Americans get paid less today than 10 years ago,” he said. “But health care and college tuition cost more every year. Meanwhile, Wall Street bankers inflate bubbles in everything from government bonds to Hillary Clinton’s speaking fees. Our economy is broken. If you’re watching me right now, you understand this better than any politician in Washington D.C.” He also said he was “proud to be gay,” the first time a Republican convention speaker had made such a statement. Mr. Thiel was identified as gay nine years ago by