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Comment by testdummy13 | Hacker News Reader

"Why would a VC or any capitalist invest money if they cannot see a way to earn back multiples?"

Why did Andrew Carnegie invest in building public libraries? Surely it wasn't because he was expecting a capital return.

The oligarchs (at least some of them) used to feel some responsibility to the betterment of man. It really seems like today's billionaires really only care about money and power and nothing else.

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In case of Andrew Carnegie, it was probably desire at end of his life to been rembered as not only a ruthless businessmen and monopolist.

"Carnegie spent his last years as a philanthropist. From 1901 forward, public attention was turned from the shrewd business acumen which had enabled Carnegie to accumulate such a fortune, to the public-spirited way in which he devoted himself to using it on philanthropic projects."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Carnegie

Bill Gates is in similar phase of life.

As an olive branch, I came in connection with a group (mostly out of Asia) that seems to be more connected by the day (meaning I keep making more mutual connections). They have a very specific vision for capital aimed at funding generational companies whose vision aligns with bettering humanity rather than exploiting it.

They are out there, but unfortunately very much on the fringe because it's difficult to raise money with that ethos.

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