Additional Coverage:
Billionaire Mark Cuban has recently declared Vice President Kamala Harris the sole presidential candidate currently embodying “Founder Mode,” a term initially coined by Y Combinator cofounder Paul Graham to describe proactive and involved business leaders. Cuban, a notable figure on “Shark Tank,” expressed his view in a post on X this Thursday, drawing upon Graham’s Sunday essay that differentiated the direct involvement of founders from the more delegatory nature of managers.
In his explanatory essay, Graham criticized the conventional managerial approach: “Hire good people and give them room to work,” he noted, often leads to hiring ineffectual staff that could run the company aground. Highlighting that commitment and a hands-on approach are crucial, Cuban supported this viewpoint with additional comments earlier this week, discussing the pitfalls of relying too heavily on managerial hires without sufficient oversight from founders or primary teams.
While “Founder Mode” is often linked to tech leaders like Airbnb’s Brian Chesky and the late Steve Jobs of Apple, Cuban believes Harris exemplifies these qualities in the political arena. During a CNBC “Squawk Box” interview, Cuban praised Harris for her pro-business stance, particularly her focus on supporting entrepreneurs and facilitating access to investments more than any other president he has observed.
Cuban, who initially endorsed President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign, shifted his support to Harris after she became the Democratic nominee. He mentioned ongoing discussions with Harris’ team and even proposed his participation in her administration if she were to win the election, specifically expressing interest in a role with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to enact change.
Neither Cuban’s nor Harris’ team responded to comments on these developments immediately.