In the encrypted confines of a Signal group chat dubbed “Save California,” a cadre of tech titans is mounting a fierce resistance against a proposed 5% wealth tax targeting the state’s ultra-rich. Participants including Anduril founder Palmer Luckey, Craft Ventures’ David Sacks, and Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen have traded barbs, relocation tips, and tactical ideas to derail the measure backed by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW).

The initiative, unveiled in October, would impose a one-time levy on the worldwide net worth of Californians exceeding $1 billion, sparing primary residences, retirement accounts, and certain real estate but capturing stocks, private company stakes, and art. SEIU-UHW projects it would generate $100 billion from roughly 200 individuals to counter federal healthcare cuts under the 2025 Republican tax law signed by President Trump. The tax would apply retroactively to January 1, 2026, requiring 875,000 signatures for the November ballot.

Chat members decry the plan as “Communism” and warn of an innovation-killing exodus. WIRED (link) reports Larry Page’s apparent shift to Florida amid the uproar, while The New York Times (link) notes Peter Thiel and Page weighing departures. Cryptopolitan (link) details the chat’s role in uniting politically diverse elites.

Billionaires Bolt for Florida Sun

Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, each worth over $250 billion, are severing California ties. The New York Times (link) reveals Brin following Page’s lead by relocating business entities, with Page snapping up $173.4 million in Miami waterfront properties per the Wall Street Journal. Thiel Capital inked a Miami lease, per the WSJ archive.

Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan warned on X of shifting programs to Austin or Cambridge if the tax passes, posting that it equates to an unrealized gains tax crippling startups at unicorn valuations. Tan highlighted how founders like Alphabet’s duo face 50% effective hits on super-voting shares due to valuation quirks, as noted in his January posts.

The Tax’s Mechanics and Evasion Math

Drafted with input from University of Missouri law professor David Gamage, the measure allows borrowing against assets or payment deferrals rather than forced sales. Yet critics like Tan argue its anti-debt provisions—aimed at curbing ‘buy, borrow, die’ strategies—trap illiquid founders. SEIU-UHW’s Debru Carthan defended it, stating, “We’re simply trying to keep emergency rooms open and save patient lives…the few who left have shown the world just how outrageously greedy they truly are,” via the WSJ archive.

Supporters tout the 5% rate as modest against 7.5% average annual wealth growth for billionaires, adjusted for inflation. But Fortune (link) quotes founders fearing market dips could ruin them, with one lamenting, “One market correction…and I am screwed for life.” Fox Business (link) covers Palmer Luckey’s exodus warnings.

Chat Tactics and Alternative Pitches

Inside “Save California,” ideas flow: emulate Bill Ackman’s loophole closures over wealth grabs, prioritize fraud cuts, or swap taxes for low-interest stock loans to the state. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), a proponent, told the WSJ archive the tax needs tweaks for illiquids: “There has to be some provisions…I’m working to bring together tech leaders and labor leaders.” Chat users eye unseating Khanna, per The New York Times.

Next-week calls pit compromise against defeat strategies. Tan cited GDP slowdowns in wealth-tax nations and clustering benefits at risk, per his X posts. Nvidia’s Jensen Huang shrugged it off, but chat sentiment sours on family-rooted relocations.

Historical Echoes and Ballot Hurdles

Memories of Proposition 30—temporary 2012 hikes extended to 2030—fuel permanence fears, as Tax Foundation’s Jared Walczak notes to the WSJ. California’s 13.3% top income rate already bites. San Francisco accountant Richard Pon backs it: “I’m not going to be a billionaire…It’s never going to impact me.”

The Guardian (link) profiles divisions, with funds eyed for education, food aid, healthcare. Business Insider (link) and Benzinga (link) track entity shifts. Luckey blasted Khanna on X: “What you are saying…is NOT a 1-2% wealth tax…it is a 5% tax calculated all in one year.”

Prosperity Pleas Amid Partisan Fire

Chat pleas emphasize pro-growth policies over punitive measures. Tan posted: “Making all Californians poorer is not the answer…driving out the entrepreneurs…is not the way.” Gov. Newsom acknowledged competition from low-tax states like Texas, Florida, per Tan’s X share. A teachers’ union pushes permanent hikes, escalating stakes.

Daily Mail (link) frames Brin’s moves as fleeing greed accusations. As signatures mount, the chat’s mobilization—bridging Trump allies like Sacks and Harris donor Larsen—signals a rare tech unity against Sacramento’s reach.