PLUS: The mystery of myopia. View in browser | Your newsletter preferences 02.22.26 Members Only Early in my tenure at WIRED, I asked a journalist friend in the know: Do gay men secretly run Silicon Valley? I'm not sure why I thought this. Had I overheard something at a bar in Palo Alto? Connected various dots? Whatever the reason, I was rewarded with a phrase I'd never forget: "It's called the gay tech mafia , Jason," my friend said. "And a lot of people want that story." That was almost a decade ago, and nobody published anything. I, for one, certainly tried. Brought it up at pitch meetings. Asked around. Told freelancers to look into it. Nothing—until I got an email one Monday morning last November. "I'm pitching this story because it comes up in nearly every conversation I've been having with founders lately," a writer named ZoĆ« Bernard wrote. "Is Silicon Valley a gay meritocracy?" It felt like destiny. W...