
Revolt of the Billionaires
From Central Air by Josh Barro, Megan McArdle & Ben Dreyfuss
March 11, 2026 · 1h 14m
About this episode
The episode discusses the potential exodus of billionaires from California due to a proposed wealth tax, featuring guest Mike Solana.
On this week's show: Mike Solana of Pirate Wires joins us to talk about Silicon Valley. He’s been talking with lots of billionaires who are taking steps to exit California in anticipation of a proposed wealth tax. We discuss how credible those threats are, and what makes the wealth tax different from prior soak-the-rich tax proposals. Plus: the alleged “Gay Tech Mafia,” of which Wired magazine says Mike is a member, the gyrating price of oil, and the outrage over Timothée Chalamet saying “no one cares” about ballet or opera . Sign up for updates from Central Air at www.centralairpodcast.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.centralairpodcast.com/subscribe
People in this episode
Hosts: Josh Barro, Megan McArdle, Ben Dreyfuss
Guest: Mike Solana
Topics covered
- Silicon Valley
- wealth tax
- billionaires
- California
- cultural commentary
Keywords
- billionaires
- wealth tax
- California
- Silicon Valley
- Timothée Chalamet
- Gay Tech Mafia
- oil prices
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Pirate Wires, Wired
Places: California
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