The Phoenix Project

Netflix Backs Out of Bid for Warner Bros., Paving Way for an Ellison Takeover

The richest man owns X.

The second and third richest men control Google.

The fourth richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

The fifth richest man owns The Washington Post.

And now the sixth richest could soon take over both Paramount and Warner Bros.

See the problem here?

The Death of San Francisco’s Environmental Movement - The Phoenix Project The Phoenix Review offers news and commentary on the proposed right-wing takeover of San Francisco. Learn more about the billionaire agenda in short takes from the city’s savviest political observers.

Read more at the Phoenix Review - www.phoenixprojectnow.com/phoenix-revi...

The result is that environmental constraint is being recast as the enemy of progress. In embracing growth-at-all-costs logic, SF’s abundance politics mirrors the technocratic right — leaving environmentalism stripped of its core power: the ability to say no.

Environmental review has protected communities, forced mitigation, and sometimes stopped harmful projects. Now it’s being framed as obstruction. Proposals to consolidate reviews and limit challenges shrink the public’s ability to shape what gets built.

The shift is clearest among self-described moderates and the “abundance” movement. Groups like New Consensus argue climate urgency requires speeding development by weakening permitting and environmental review long seen as democratic safeguards.

Environmentalism is both about clean energy, but also restraint — binding development to law, impact, and democratic review. In today’s SF politics, that the idea of limiting growth has become politically untenable.

Where did San Francisco’s environmental movement go? Environmentalism has been hollowed out by a new consensus of YIMBY and Abundance players that treat regulation itself as an unacceptable cost.

The Abundance Gang Has a Big AI Problem The faddish political movement’s ties to industry figures may help attract funding, but it comes with a political cost.

The abundance clique has an AI problem. Beyond being funded by Silicon Valley, the ecosystem features an array of tech libertarians, a smattering of technofascism, and no answers for our anti-AI moment. Read @dylangyauchl.bsky.social in @newrepublic.com!

newrepublic.com/article/2064...

Mayor Daniel Lurie’s Spending - The Phoenix Project The Phoenix Review offers news and commentary on the proposed right-wing takeover of San Francisco. Learn more about the billionaire agenda in short takes from the city’s savviest political observers.

Read more at the Phoenix Review! www.phoenixprojectnow.com/phoenix-revi...

The concern isn’t so much what Lurie has done, but what his wealth makes possible. His heavy spending raises questions about how much power money increasingly holds in determining who governs San Francisco.

Lurie’s rise also highlights a broader shift in San Francisco politics, where well-funded “moderate” groups and large independent expenditures have reshaped elections, defeated progressives, and amplified narratives about the city’s decline.

That investment has produced a polished social media presence and tighter political branding. While nothing about it is illegal, it does underscore how decisive money has become in modern American politics.

A first-time candidate, Lurie has shown a keen awareness of his own limits. Not a natural performer or charismatic speaker, he has avoided overcompensation and instead relied on professional messaging and media strategy.

Reports that Mayor Daniel Lurie spent roughly $1M on consultants drew criticism, but the spending also reflects a political reality: after investing millions to win the 2024 race, maintaining and shaping his public image is part of the strategy.

The Foreign Policy Implications of the Network State - The Phoenix Project The Phoenix Review offers news and commentary on the proposed right-wing takeover of San Francisco. Learn more about the billionaire agenda in short takes from the city’s savviest political observers.

Read more at the Phoenix Review www.phoenixprojectnow.com/phoenix-revi...

Skeptical residents say the North Bay project reflects a broader techno-libertarian push: cities shaped by investors, lightly regulated and less democratic. Supporters call it the future of urbanism — critics call it secession by another name.

Similar “startup city” experiments and special economic zones have appeared globally, from Honduras to to proposals tied to U.S. political movements. Backers describe them as freedom-focused communities; opponents warn of corporate-run governance.

The vision draws heavily from “Network State” ideology popular in Silicon Valley, which promotes privately governed cities and alternative political systems. Advocates frame it as innovation; critics see an effort to bypass democracy and regulation.

After voters rejected the project in 2024, organizers shifted tactics, proposing expansion through nearby Suisun City. A 40-year labor agreement and new shipyard plans now frame the project as industrial revival rather than a tech enclave.

Tech investors quietly bought 60,000 acres through a front group starting in 2017, spending roughly $900M. When some local landowners refused to sell, the developers responded with a $510M lawsuit, fueling distrust across Solano County.

A stretch of farmland between Rio Vista and Fairfield has become the testing ground for California Forever, a billionaire-backed plan to build a new city. Marketed as a walkable housing solution, critics argue it represents something far more political. 🧶

Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan launches dark-money group to influence California politics The Y Combinator CEO announced "Garry's List," a new big-money group spending and operating in races across the state.

Oh look, just another “moderate” project, not a techno-fascist billionaire thing, nope

Garry Tan started a new “Radical Centrist” group and it’s hilarious. #politics #Tech #centrism

This astroturf org has been writing op-eds in the chronicle and making comments everywhere that absolutely undermine the current teacher strike. Real parents who aren’t backed by billionaires + obscene generational wealth understand labor struggles and solidarity.

San Francisco rents surge at fastest pace in the nation San Francisco appears to be back — and the rent shows it.

San Francisco City Hall could take action to bring rents down. Instead, the Mayor and majority of the Board of Supervisors are trying to divert attention to deregulation efforts that they know won’t help.

Our city urgently needs policies designed to bring rents down not prop up industry profits.

A Growing Divide in Silicon Valley - The Phoenix Project The Phoenix Review offers news and commentary on the proposed right-wing takeover of San Francisco. Learn more about the billionaire agenda in short takes from the city’s savviest political observers.

Read more at the Phoenix Review - www.phoenixprojectnow.com/phoenix-revi...

Trump’s alliance with tech billionaires has been lucrative: the richest 15 gained $1T in wealth in his first year. Firms like Palantir won major ICE contracts. Critics say the muted response to Pretti’s death shows profits still trump morality.

Other tech figures doubled down. Elon Musk publicly backed ICE and mass deportations. VC Keith Rabois denied ICE wrongdoing, drawing condemnation from Khosla Ventures founder Vinod Khosla, who called ICE “vigilantes.”

Cook drew criticism for attending a Melania Trump documentary screening the night of Pretti’s killing and for donating $1M to Trump’s inaugural fund. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said ICE went “too far,” but praised Trump’s leadership—and also donated $1M.

LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman urged tech leaders to speak out, accusing ICE of brutal violence and the Trump administration of lying. But many billionaire Trump allies stayed silent. Apple CEO Tim Cook issued only a cautious call for “de-escalation.”