Sergey Brin drops $20 million to help fix California's housing crunch
Google co-founder Sergey Brin just made his biggest public donation ever—$20 million to "Building a Better California."
The goal? Support ballot measures that make it easier to build more homes in the state.
This comes right after Brin moved into a $42 million mansion near Lake Tahoe.
Tech leaders are teaming up
Brin isn't alone. Other tech heavyweights, like ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt and investor Michael Moritz, each pitched in $2 million.
PayPal's Max Levchin added $1 million, with DoorDash's Tony Xu and Stripe's Patrick Collison also on the donor list.
Why now? A billionaire tax is looming
All this giving is happening as California considers a pending ballot initiative that, in one version, would impose a 1% wealth tax on billionaires while another proposal would target 1% of their wealth—something folks like Peter Thiel are already fighting against.
For context, Brin also had his philanthropic vehicles disburse roughly $1.1 billion in 2025, with funds earmarked for areas including health and climate.