Al Gore may not have invented the Internet, but Marc Andreessen, who invented the world's first commercial Web browser, gives the former vice president credit for paving the way. "He had people buying into the concept of the information superhighway before anybody had an idea about what it would be," says Andreessen, who profited from the traffic by creating one of the most successful on-ramps, Netscape Communications.
Andreessen returned the favor during the campaign, stumping for Gore and sending all but $1,000 of his $404,000 in donations to the Democrats. Last October, Andreessen and more than 400 other high-tech business leaders endorsed Gore, who promised to create 10 million new high-tech jobs over the next decade.
For Andreessen, donating to Democrats made sense: The Clinton administration had championed his agenda -- including increasing the number of visas for high-tech workers, placing a moratorium on Internet taxes, and easing restrictions on trading with China. His political giving also gave Andreessen access to the White House. A self-professed media and movie junkie, he was invited to state dinners and the White House theater, where he watched the 1998 film "Shadrach" with the president himself.
Andreessen expected the same kind of access to Gore -- and for good reason. For several years, Andreessen had the vice president's direct attention as a member of his "GoreTechs" team of technology advisers from Silicon Valley. The Internet pioneer also joined the House "Democratic Business Forum," which provided large donors with regular briefings from lawmakers and White House officials, as well as a special newsletter.
But Andreessen, who reportedly netted $174 million by the age of 24, says political donations like the $250,000 he gave to the Democratic National Committee last spring are not as "serious" as the amounts involved in his business. After selling Netscape to AOL in 1998 and launching an Internet management company called Loudcloud, Andreessen raised $188 million in funding, and expects to drum up another $150 million by taking the firm public.
Andreessen's attitude toward selling his company to an industry giant like AOL reflects his hard-nosed approach to political giving. "I'm not a romantic," he told reporters. "I look at a situation, and I decide what side of that situation I want to be on. Then I go there."
-- Eva Dienel
