Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus VR, has been deemed a supporter of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. His actions would appear to aid Trump in the latter's bid for the white house, but as it turns out, not everything is as it seems.
This isn't your typical support; it's more interesting because it deals with memes. Luckey has been financially supporting a nonprofit organization known as Nimble America. And this group, which is in fact a supporter of the Republican nominee, unleashes memes that bash Trump's opponent.
Luckey: 'Real Jolly Good Time'
What exactly are the memes about? They are not directly about Trump himself — they are targeted toward Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee. These memes are, of course, designed in the hopes that they will go viral. The initiative has been described as a "meme machine."
Memes are generally always fun, and Luckey appears to be having a lot of fun with the creation of the memes.
"I've got plenty of money," Luckey told The Daily Beast. "Money is not my issue. I thought it sounded like a real jolly good time."
Anti-Hillary Clinton Memes And Ads
Nimble America was behind an ad outside of Pittsburgh with a cartoon of Clinton alongside the tagline, "Too Big to Jail." Of course, the jab is alluding to the Clinton email scandal where some folks felt she should have seen jail time.
The company claims it has been creating several memes on social media and other online forums for the same purpose of portraying Clinton in that light.
"We conquered Reddit and drive narrative on social media, conquered the [mainstream media], now it's time to get our most delicious memes in front of Americans whether they like it or not," a member of the group posted on Reddit.
Is Palmer Luckey A Trump Supporter?
While Luckey has admitted to pumping $10,000 into the meme machine as his personal contribution, he said he did so thinking "the organization had fresh ideas on how to communicate with young voters through the use of several billboards."
In a Facebook post, Luckey apologized for his actions which — judging from the immediate backlash over his perceived support for Trump — many in the gaming community believe could end up hurting the prospects of Oculus VR.
"My actions were my own and do not represent Oculus," he posted. "I'm sorry for the impact my actions are having on the community."
Luckey made clear, however, that he's a Libertarian and will be voting for Gary Johnson — not Trump.
"I did not write the 'NimbleRichMan' posts, nor did I delete the account. Reports that I am a founder or employee of Nimble America are false," he said. "I don't have any plans to donate beyond what I have already given to Nimble America."
Vocal Trump Supporter: Peter Thiel
This is not to suggest that Trump has no friend in Silicon Valley. In fact, Paypal cofounder and Facebook investor Peter Thiel appeared at the Republican National Convention in July, openly expressing support for Trump. The megadonor, however, never shelled out any donation to the Trump campaign.
Thiel has been known to throw his support behind a wide array of causes. He was the man who helped bankroll Hulk Hogan's fight against Gawker, which turned out to be a huge victory. The controversial Thiel has remained on the board of Facebook despite criticism over his association with Trump.
