From the New York Times, January 9:
Sergey Brin is joining his Google co-founder, Larry Page, in reducing ties to the state where they built their fortunes.
For nearly three decades, Google has been steeped in the lore of Silicon Valley.
Larry Page and Sergey Brin, two Stanford University graduate students, created the search engine in 1998 and built the start-up out of a friend’s garage in Menlo Park, Calif. Over time, Google became a nearly $4 trillion juggernaut, helping to cement the Northern California region as the global epicenter of the internet industry.
Now, Mr. Brin and Mr. Page are cutting some ties with the state where they made their fortunes.
In the 10 days before Christmas, an entity connected to Mr. Brin, 52, terminated or moved 15 California limited liability companies that oversee some of his business interests and investments out of the state, according to documents seen by The New York Times. Seven of the companies — including those that appear to manage one of Mr. Brin’s superyachts and his interest in a private air terminal at San Jose’s international airport — were converted into Nevada entities.
Mr. Brin is joining Mr. Page, 52, in reducing his California presence. More than 45 California limited liability companies associated with Mr. Page filed documents last month to either become inactive or move out of the state, according to state records. A trust with ties to Mr. Page also purchased a $71.9 million mansion in Miami’s Coconut Grove neighborhood this week, according to a deed seen by The Times.
Another entity jointly managed by Mr. Brin and Mr. Page moved out of California and to Nevada on Christmas Eve, according to a filing seen by The Times.
The Google founders’ shrinking connections to California underscore the impact of a potential ballot measure that would affect the state’s wealthiest residents. Proposed by a health care union, the measure calls for Californians worth more than $1 billion to pay a one-time tax that would be equivalent of 5 percent of their assets. If the measure gains enough signatures to reach the state ballot in November and wins approval, it would retroactively apply to anyone who lived in the state as of Jan. 1 and they would have five years to pay it.
The potential wealth tax has already caused some California billionaires to establish more ties outside the state. Last month, the venture capitalist Peter Thiel announced that he opened an office for his family investment firm in Miami. David Sacks, the tech investor and White House adviser on artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, unveiled a new office for his venture capital firm, Craft Ventures, in Austin, Texas.
But the actions of Mr. Brin and Mr. Page stand out because of their wealth — their combined net worths total more than $518 billion, as estimated by Forbes — and how closely identified they are with California. While both stepped down from day-to-day management of Google and its parent, Alphabet, in 2019, they remain on the board of the company and Mr. Brin has recently become more active in Google’s A.I. efforts....
....MUCH MORE
Previously:
December 28, 2025 - "A Wealth Tax Floated in California Has Billionaires Thinking of Leaving"
November 17, 2025 - "Norway's Wealth Tax Unchains a Capital Exodus
