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Trait: Elections occur, but money and media guarantee elite outcomes ×
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Mar 31, 2026 AI industry groups funded Super PACs, including one led by a January 6 operative, to spend over $100 million supporting favored candidates in 2026 midterms Corroborated Economic Structure
Corporate political spending organized by a figure tied to efforts to overturn the 2020 election raises concerns about undisclosed money shaping electoral outcomes.
Supporting reportingSurfacings — do not carry alone
Supporting reports
- AI industry funds Innovation Council led by January 6 operative to boost MAGA candidates — The AI industry has hired Taylor Budowich, a key operative in efforts to overturn the 2020 election, to lead the Innovation Council, a new group planning to spend $100 million to boost Republican candidates in the 2026 midterms. Budowich previously directed over $200,000 in advertisements to build crowds for the January 6, 2021 attack and founded MAGA Inc., Trump's main Super PAC. The Innovation Council is organized as a nonprofit to avoid disclosing donors or filing with the Federal Election Commission, maintaining donor anonymity through complex organizational structures.
- Leading the Future PAC spent more on attacking Democrat than supporting Democrats — Leading the Future, a pro-AI PAC that raised over $125 million and claims to be bipartisan, has spent approximately $2.9 million supporting Republicans and $2.5 million supporting Democrats. However, the PAC's Democratic affiliate, Think Big, spent $2.3 million attacking Democrat Alex Bores running for Congress in New York. The Democrats supported by the PAC, Jesse Jackson Jr. and Melissa Bean, are running in historically blue Illinois districts where Republican candidates are unlikely to win.
- Leading the Future pledged $5 million to support Byron Donalds' gubernatorial campaign — Leading the Future, the pro-AI PAC claiming bipartisan support, pledged to spend $5 million in support of Representative Byron Donalds' (R-FL) campaign for Florida Governor. This spending was reportedly an effort to solidify the PAC's relationship with the White House, demonstrating how corporate political spending is used to maintain access and influence with the Trump administration.
- Innovation Council created pages describing AI concerns as "hoaxes" — The Innovation Council, led by Taylor Budowich, created a series of web pages that describe concerns about AI job displacement, data center energy use, and safety as "hoaxes." The pages were later taken offline but were indexed by the Bing search engine. The group's public website features materials created by the Trump White House.
- Meta created multiple Super PACs with $65 million in funding — Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, created multiple new pro-AI Super PACs: Mobilizing Economic Transformation Across (Meta) California, which received $20 million, and the American Technology Excellence Project (ATEP), which received $45 million. While Meta indicated the PACs would support bipartisan candidates, the ATEP appears to favor Republicans, with spending concentrated in Illinois and Texas. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg was appointed to Trump's President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, and Meta donated $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund.
- Andreessen appointed to Trump's science advisory council after major political donations — Marc Andreessen, a cofounder of Andreessen Horowitz, was appointed to Trump's President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. Andreessen and his partner Ben Horowitz each donated $12.5 million to Leading the Future, a pro-AI PAC, and both had previously donated millions to a Super PAC supporting Trump in the 2024 election. Andreessen's appointment follows this pattern of corporate political investment followed by executive branch access.
Attacks
Verified: Corroborated — 2+ independent news desks
Week 63 – 2026-03-28–2026-04-03
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