Andreessen Horowitz
Andreessen Horowitz is a major venture capital firm whose political spending, federal lobbying, policy advocacy, and personnel transitions into government coincide with the regulatory interests of its portfolio companies across AI, cryptocurrency, and defense procurement.
Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) is a Menlo Park, California venture capital firm founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. From a $300 million inaugural fund, the firm grew to manage roughly $42 billion across funds spanning consumer, enterprise, bio, crypto, and defense technology 1. In January 2026, a16z closed a $15 billion fundraise that included a dedicated $1.176 billion "American Dynamism" defense and national security fund 1. The firm's 13F filings (CIK 0001540358) show a public equity portfolio that grew from $745 million in Q4 2024 to $1.58 billion by Q4 2025, composed entirely of post-IPO positions in portfolio companies with zero public defense-sector equity 2.
Beginning in 2024, a16z co-founders made large-scale political commitments aligned with the incoming Trump administration's policy direction. Marc Andreessen donated $4.5 million to MAGA Inc, a Trump Super PAC, and contributed a combined $25 million with Ben Horowitz to launch "Leading the Future," a pro-AI-deregulation Super PAC that raised $125 million by end-2025 3. Andreessen separately directed $11.9 million to the Fairshake crypto Super PAC in December 2025, bringing documented a16z Super PAC commitments above $37 million in the current cycle 3. The firm tripled its federal lobbying footprint over the same period, engaging three firms and spending $1.49 million on federal lobbying in 2025, double the 2024 figure 4.
Several a16z principals subsequently moved into senior federal positions, including Scott Kupor as Director of the Office of Personnel Management and Sam Corcos as Treasury Chief Information Officer through DOGE Connection #2990, Connection #3004. These placements are detailed in the Government Personnel section below.
Government Personnel
Scott Kupor joined a16z as its first employee in 2009 and served as managing partner for sixteen years before becoming Director of the Office of Personnel Management in July 2025 Connection #3081. His OGE 278 financial disclosure lists his a16z salary as $2,537,996 and anticipated severance of $5 million to $25 million; he resigned from 32 a16z fund boards but retained passive investor status in 38 others Connection #2990. OPM, which manages federal workforce policy and hiring, absorbed DOGE workforce-reduction functions under his tenure, with plans for eliminating approximately 300,000 federal roles reported at the time of his confirmation Connection #2990.
Sam Corcos, the CEO of Levels Health, a company a16z funded, was placed at the Treasury Department as Chief Information Officer through DOGE Connection #3004. In that role he directed the cancellation of $1.5 billion in IRS contracts and administered coding assessments to IRS IT staff, reportedly deeming an estimated 100 to 200 of 8,500 personnel adequate Connection #3004. Kupor at OPM and Corcos at Treasury placed a16z-affiliated individuals in positions overseeing federal workforce policy and Treasury financial technology procurement simultaneously Connection #2990, Connection #3004.
James D. Sullivan served as an Investment Partner at a16z from August 2019 through January 2025, then became Senior Advisor at OPM under Kupor. According to his ProPublica financial disclosure, Sullivan retained a16z fund interests valued at $100 million to $250 million while advising the agency that oversees federal hiring practices and workforce policies.
Brian Quintenz, a16z's head of crypto policy and a former CFTC Commissioner (2017 to 2021), was nominated by President Trump to chair the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in February 2025. The nomination was withdrawn in September 2025.
Andreessen Horowitz
Defense Investment and Procurement
a16z established its "American Dynamism" practice to concentrate investments in defense, aerospace, and national security 1. The January 2026 fundraise allocated $1.176 billion specifically to this vertical 1. Katherine Boyle, the General Partner who leads the practice, previously co-led the seed practice at General Catalyst and invested in the inception rounds of Anduril Industries and Vannevar Labs before joining a16z. According to records of the event, the firm held its fourth annual American Dynamism Summit in Washington, DC in 2026 under the theme "Securing the Next 250 Years," with attendees including Shyam Sankar (CTO, Palantir), Christian Brose (President and CSO, Anduril), and Liz Young McNally (Deputy Director, Defense Innovation Unit) 5.
The firm's "American Dynamism 50" list for 2025 publicly enumerated 51 portfolio and affiliated companies positioned to benefit from defense spending, including Anduril Industries (autonomous defense systems), Shield AI (autonomous aircraft AI), Saronic (autonomous naval vessels), Castelion (hypersonic weapons), Epirus (directed-energy weapons), and Vannevar Labs (national security AI) 6. Analysis of confirmed federal contract awards to portfolio companies documented the following: Anduril with more than $22 billion in DoD contracts including the IVAS novation and a Golden Dome SBI prototype; Saronic with a $392 million Navy Corsair autonomous surface vessel production contract in December 2025; Shield AI with $72.1 million in confirmed federal awards plus an $8 billion EWACC contract position; and Astranis with a $13.2 million Space Force contract 7. According to USASpending records, $88.6 million in contract value was documented for Shield AI, Astranis, and Saildrone combined, separate from the Anduril figures 8.
Hadrian, a precision machining portfolio company, hired Rear Admiral Mike Manazir, a retired U.S. Navy officer and former Boeing executive, as VP of Federal Sales 1. Examination of the firm's policy documents shows a16z released papers titled "Why America Needs Dynamic Defense Reform" and "Investing Capital to Defend the Nation," advocating procurement reform pathways that would accelerate contract awards to the types of startups it funds 9.
Political Spending and Lobbying
FEC records show Marc Andreessen directed $5.06 million in disclosed political contributions including $4.5 million to MAGA Inc (a Trump Super PAC), $5,000 to the NRSC, and $5,000 to SLF PAC 1. In anchor commitments to Super PACs, Andreessen and Horowitz each contributed $12.5 million to "Leading the Future" (LTF), a pro-AI-regulation PAC that reached $125 million total by end-2025 and counts OpenAI's Greg Brockman, Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, and Perplexity among its donors 3. Andreessen contributed an additional $11.9 million to the Fairshake crypto PAC in December 2025; Fairshake reported a $193 million war chest for the 2026 cycle and claims 50-plus candidate wins in the 2024 cycle 3.
Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings show a16z engaged three lobbying firms across sequential years: McDermott+ LLC, registered Q2 2023, covering AI in healthcare, drug approval, and Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement; Cornerstone Government Affairs, registered Q4 2024, covering technology, blockchain, cryptocurrency, and energy at $80,000–$100,000 per quarter; and BGR Government Affairs, registered Q1 2025, covering AI and digital assets with seven registered lobbyists 4. Total federal lobbying expenditure reached $1.49 million in 2025, double the 2024 figure 4. The American Bazaar reported this outpaced all rival VC firms 4.
In April 2025, a16z co-founded the American Innovators Network, a registered lobbying group with Vanessa Day — a former senior adviser to Speaker Paul Ryan — as executive director, and Y Combinator as a co-member 10. Collin McCune, a16z's head of government affairs, was hired from Representative McHenry's congressional staff. Federal lobbying across a16z and affiliated entities reached $3.53 million in 2025 10.
The Little Tech Agenda
On July 5, 2024, Andreessen and Horowitz published "The Little Tech Agenda," a policy document with four core demands: deregulation of AI development; favorable cryptocurrency regulation; relaxed merger and acquisition oversight for tech startups; and reduced capital gains taxation 10. Broadband Breakfast reported in January 2025 that the agenda tracked Trump administration policy more closely than the administration's own statements, writing that it "has gone from being the tail wagging to the dog barking."
Each demand corresponds to a commercial interest of the firm: AI deregulation benefits a16z's AI fund; cryptocurrency regulation benefits its crypto fund; relaxed M&A rules improve portfolio company exit conditions; and lower capital gains taxation benefits carried interest and LP returns 10. a16z's head of government affairs stated publicly: "Andreessen Horowitz is on the side of Little Tech." The document preceded the firm's largest political spending cycle and its tripling of lobbying expenditure.
Public Equity Structure
a16z Capital Management (SEC CIK 0001540358) files quarterly 13F-HR reports covering its public equity holdings 2. Across five consecutive filings from Q4 2024 through Q4 2025, the portfolio held zero defense or defense-technology public equities — no Palantir, no defense primes, no aerospace stocks 2. Holdings consisted entirely of post-IPO positions in portfolio companies: DoorDash ($268 million, 37% of portfolio in Q4 2024) and Samsara were exited by Q2 2025; Figma appeared at $843 million (60% of portfolio) following its IPO in Q3 2025; Navan appeared at $464 million in Q4 2025 11. The portfolio doubled from $745 million to $1.58 billion over this period 11.
The absence of public defense equity confirms that a16z's defense investments, including the $1.176 billion American Dynamism fund, are held entirely through private and pre-IPO vehicles 2. A separate EDGAR footprint (Marc Andreessen CIK 0001160077) encompasses 134 filings across extensive fund vehicles.
All Connections
3 total
All Connections
3 totalFirst hire 2009; managing partner 16 years; resigned from 32 funds but passive investor in 38 others upon becoming OPM Director July 2025; planned 300K federal role elimination
a16z first hire and managing partner became OPM Director July 2025, absorbed DOGE workforce functions
Levels Health CEO (a16z-funded) assigned as Special Adviser to Treasury Secretary via DOGE
All Findings
11 total
All Findings
11 totalfinancial (5)
a16z American Dynamism deep dive: $1.176B dedicated defense/national security fund within $15B total Jan 2026 raise. Published 'American Dynamism 50' list annually spotlighting defense-adjacent portfolio companies. Key defense portfolio: Anduril (autonomous weapons), Shield AI (autonomous aircraft), ACS/Applied Concepts Systems (Bullfrog autonomous counter-drone gun), Astranis ($13.2M Space Force contract), Hadrian (precision manufacturing, hired Rear Admiral Mike Manazir as VP Federal Sales), Antares ($3.75M DoD funding), Pryzm (defense AI, $12.2M seed). Also investor in Erebor Bank. Marc Andreessen personally donated $4.5M to MAGA Inc (Trump Super PAC).
American Dynamism portfolio companies with government contracts: ANDURIL: $2.3B+ DoD contracts, $22B IVAS, Golden Dome SBI prototype SHIELD AI: $72.1M federal contracts (DHS/Coast Guard, Air Force, Navy, SOCOM). V-BAT VTOL UAV. Coatue co-investor. Revenue $200M (2024, 64% YoY growth). 900 employees. $8B EWACC contract position. ACS (APPLIED CONCEPTS SYSTEMS): Bullfrog autonomous robotic gun for counter-drone defense. Co-founded by former Navy nuclear engineers. ASTRANIS: $13.2M Space Force contract for Military Ka-band satellite capability. HADRIAN: Precision metal components for rockets, satellites, jets, drones. Hired Rear Admiral Mike Manazir (former Boeing exec, retired USN) as VP Federal Sales. This is the revolving door in action. ANTARES: $3.75M DoD funding, working with national laboratories on nuclear technology. PRYZM: Defense AI startup, $12.2M seed backed by a16z. a16z defense reform agenda: Published 'Why America Needs Dynamic Defense Reform' and 'Investing Capital to Defend the Nation' policy papers. Hosted American Dynamism Summit 2026 themed 'Securing the Next 250 Years.' This positions a16z not just as an investor but as a policy advocate for the very procurement changes that benefit its portfolio. Lobbying: McDermott+ LLC (health/Medicare issues), Cornerstone Government Affairs ($40K, financial securities). Marc Andreessen personal FEC: $5.06M total. $4.5M to MAGA Inc (Trump Super PAC), $5K NRSC, $5K SLF PAC. Ben Horowitz also major Trump donor. a16z alumni in government: Katherine Boyle (a16z general partner, American Dynamism lead) is key figure connecting fund to defense establishment.
a16z SUPER PAC ECOSYSTEM: a16z co-founders anchor-fund three major Super PACs targeting 2026 midterms. (1) LEADING THE FUTURE (LTF): $25M from Andreessen+Horowitz ($12.5M each), total raised $125M by end-2025. Pro-AI regulation PAC targeting anti-regulation candidates. Other funders: OpenAI Greg Brockman, Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, Ron Conway, Perplexity. Modeled on Fairshake crypto success. (2) FAIRSHAKE: $11.9M from Andreessen (Dec 2025), bringing a16z total commitments to ~$60M. Total war chest $193M for 2026. 50+ candidate wins in 2024 cycle. (3) DEFEND AMERICAN JOBS + PROTECT PROGRESS: $50K each from Andreessen. Combined a16z political spending on Super PACs alone exceeds $37M in current cycle.
a16z LOBBYING EXPANSION 2023-2025: LDA filings show a16z tripled its lobbying infrastructure. Three firms engaged simultaneously: (1) McDermott+ LLC (registered Q2 2023): AI in healthcare, drug approval, Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement. Lobbyist: Rachel Stauffer (fmr Health Policy Director for Rep Diana DeGette). $10K/quarter through Q1 2024, then amounts not reported. (2) Cornerstone Government Affairs (registered Q4 2024): technology, blockchain, cryptocurrency, energy. Lobbyists: Michael Smith, David Planning. $80-100K/quarter. (3) BGR Government Affairs (registered Q1 2025): AI and digital assets. 7 lobbyists including Matt Hoffmann, Lester Munson, Joseph Lai, Maya Seiden, Patrick Ames, Andrew Lewin, Jennifer Brown. $30-80K/quarter. Total 2025 federal lobbying: $1.49M (doubled from 2024). American Bazaar reports this outpaces all rival VCs.
a16z Capital Management (CIK 0001540358) held ZERO defense or defense-tech public equities across all 5 quarters Q4 2024-Q4 2025. Portfolio entirely biotech, fintech, and enterprise software (DoorDash, Samsara, Block, Figma, Navan). Only tech-adjacent position: Meta Platforms ($140M, Q3-Q4 2025). Total portfolio grew from $745M to $1.58B. 12-13 positions per quarter. No Palantir, no defense primes, no quantum stocks.
a16z Capital Management's portfolio underwent significant restructuring in 2025. DoorDash ($268M, 37% of portfolio in Q4 2024) and Samsara ($175M) were completely exited by Q2 2025. Figma appeared Q3 2025 at $843M (60% of portfolio) following its IPO, becoming the dominant position. Navan appeared Q4 2025 at $464M. Portfolio doubled from $745M to $1.58B. This is a classic VC firm 13F: holdings are post-IPO positions from portfolio companies, not open-market purchases. Zero defense exposure confirms a16z's defense investments are entirely private/pre-IPO.
intelligence (6)
AMERICAN DYNAMISM 50 (2025): 'Companies Shaping the Fight of the Future' -- full list of 51 companies across defense, aerospace, energy, manufacturing, computing, and homeland security. Defense-specific companies: Anduril Industries (autonomous defense), Allen Control Systems/ACS (counter-drone), Auterion (unmanned warfare OS), Cape (secure mobile networks), Castelion (hypersonic weapons), CX2 (electronic warfare AI), Epirus (directed-energy weapons), Firehawk Aerospace (hybrid rocket engines), Forterra (autonomous military vehicles), Neros Technologies (unmanned defense), Reveal (frontline situational awareness), Rune Technologies (military logistics AI), Saronic (autonomous naval vessels), Shield AI (autonomous drone AI), Swan (scalable autonomous defense), Vannevar Labs (national security AI), Zeromark (infantry counter-drone). Aerospace/space: Aalyria, Aetherflux, AnySignal, Apex Space, Astranis, Astro Mechanica, Hermeus, Impulse Space, Northwood Space, SpaceX, Turion Space, Umbra, Venus Aerospace. Key non-portfolio inclusion: SpaceX (Musk). This list functions as a16z's public signal of which companies it expects to benefit from defense spending.
LITTLE TECH AGENDA AS POLICY BLUEPRINT: Published July 5, 2024 by Andreessen and Horowitz. Core demands: (1) deregulate AI development, (2) favorable cryptocurrency regulation, (3) relax merger/acquisition oversight for tech startups, (4) reduce capital gains taxation. Observers note the agenda 'has gone from being the tail wagging to the dog barking' -- better predicts Trump admin policy than Trump's own statements. Led to creation of American Innovators Network (April 2025): registered lobbying group with Vanessa Day (fmr Paul Ryan senior adviser) as executive director. Members include a16z and Y Combinator. Federal lobbying surged to $3.53M in 2025 -- double 2024. a16z head of government affairs Collin McCune (hired from Rep McHenry staff) stated: 'Andreessen Horowitz is on the side of Little Tech.' The agenda provides ideological cover for commercial interests: deregulating AI benefits a16z's AI portfolio, crypto regulation benefits a16z's crypto fund, relaxed M&A benefits portfolio company exits.
a16z DEFENSE REFORM INITIATIVE: a16z launched formal 'Dynamic Tech Defense Reform Initiative' uniting VC, startups, Congress, military, think tanks to champion acquisition reform. Katherine Boyle (General Partner, co-founder of American Dynamism practice) leads defense investment strategy. Boyle previously at General Catalyst where she co-led seed practice and invested in inception rounds of Anduril Industries and Vannevar Labs. Before VC: Washington Post reporter. a16z published 'Why America Needs Dynamic Defense Reform' policy paper advocating faster procurement pathways that benefit portfolio companies. The firm is simultaneously: (1) investing in defense startups, (2) lobbying for acquisition reform that benefits those startups, (3) placing personnel in agencies that manage procurement, (4) funding PACs that elect politicians who support their regulatory agenda. This is a vertically integrated policy capture operation.
AMERICAN DYNAMISM SUMMIT 2026: a16z held 4th annual summit in Washington DC bringing together portfolio company CEOs, Pentagon officials, and policymakers. Notable attendees: Shyam Sankar (CTO Palantir), Christian Brose (President/CSO Anduril), Chris Power (CEO Hadrian), Ian Cinnamon (CEO Apex), Bryon Hargis (CEO Castelion), Liz Young McNally (Deputy Director DIU). Fox Business covered focus on munitions production. Summit theme: 'Securing the Next 250 Years.' The summit functions as a private convening where a16z portfolio company CEOs meet senior Pentagon procurement officials -- creating relationship channels outside normal government procurement processes. a16z controls the guest list, agenda, and framing. This is not a public conference; it is a curated investor-government matchmaking event.
a16z PORTFOLIO COMPANY GOVERNMENT CONTRACT AGGREGATION: Documented federal contracts for a16z American Dynamism portfolio companies (partial list, confirmed awards only): Anduril Industries: $22B IVAS novation + $159M SBMC + Golden Dome SBI prototype + SHIELD IDIQ (multi-billion). Saronic: $392M Navy Corsair ASV production (Dec 2025). Shield AI: $72.1M federal contracts + $8B EWACC position + SBIR awards. Castelion: ~$50M Navy Blackbeard hypersonic + Army FY26 budget line. Forterra: LRIP ROGUE-Fires production orders (Marine Corps). Astranis: $13.2M Space Force contract. Umbra: $2M SDA + up to $60M STRATFI. Antares: $3.75M DoD funding. Pryzm: $12.2M seed (defense AI). Scale AI: Maven contract participant. TOTAL CONFIRMED: >>$23B in federal contract value flows to a16z portfolio companies. This does not include subcontracts or classified programs.
SYNTHESIS: a16z American Dynamism portfolio federal contract exposure from USASpending: Shield AI $52.1M (V-BAT drones, USCG/USAF/Navy), Astranis $18.9M (protected anti-jam satellite comms, USAF), Saildrone $17.6M (autonomous ocean ISR, USCG/NOAA). Combined documented portfolio company contracts: $88.6M across these 3 companies alone. Anduril ($22B+ IVAS/Golden Dome) not included in this tally as previously documented. Total a16z portfolio government contract exposure exceeds $22B.