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My name is Gerry Hays, Founder & CEO of Doriot® (pronounced “Doe-ree-oh”), a movement to break open the gates of venture and expand innovation and wealth beyond an elite few. Democratize Venture is my platform to explore the venture markets and share the insights, strategies, and frameworks I bring into the classroom. It’s where education meets execution—for anyone ready to play the startup game.

Peter Thiel is right on the Zero to One thing

This week I caught a New York Times sit-down with Peter Thiel, and it got me thinking again about him and the influence he’s had on my thinking.

Let me be clear: I don’t know Peter Thiel. I don’t know what’s in his heart. I only know what’s in mine. And yes—he’s controversial. But sometimes, he’s right.

On the point that humanity isn’t advancing fast enough, he nailed it with his now-famous line: “We wanted flying cars, instead we got 140 characters.”

I’m not talking about flying cars. Something much more difficult to pull off. I’m talking about how we live together, support each other, and tackle the biggest challenges of our time. The U.S. government is quietly unwinding the welfare state and retreating on multiple fronts. Wall Street and Silicon Valley will rush in when there’s money to be made— but they’re not building new systems to replace the ones that are breaking. Why would they? They profit handsomely from keeping the old ones alive.

Einstein famously said: “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” In other words, real change doesn’t come from tweaking broken systems. It comes from stepping outside them entirely.

Thiel calls this Zero to One. Zero to One is going from nothing to something unique—a new market, a new system, a new category. One to n is copying or slightly improving what already exists.

The difference isn’t just academic. Every truly great company was born from a Zero-to-One breakthrough. The problem? Most funding today chases one to n — safe, incremental, unimaginative. The same playbook, just with a new coat of tech paint.

We don’t need upgrades to broken systems. We need to replace them entirely. And that will never come from the incumbents. If Wall Street, Silicon Valley, or Washington were going to build fairer, more equitable systems, they’d have done it already.

Yes, we have Zero-to-One thinkers out there. I’ve seen them. I’m investing in them. But we need more than a small cohort — we need a legion. We need the kind of “failure at scale” that produces the breakthroughs capable of reshaping the world. New industries are only born when there’s both capital and people committed to building them. That’s why Wall Street and Silicon Valley get their way: they fund what they want to see, and the rest of us live with the consequences.

And while philanthropy can play a role, it—like venture capital—must be rethought from first principles. Donors should demand the same level of capital efficiency that top investors expect. The challenges we face won’t be solved by talk alone. They require decisive, sustained action.

That’s why we built VentureStaking® — a capital creation system to find and fund Zero-to-One ideas. We give high-potential founders the runway to re-stack the pieces of existing systems into something entirely new. Instead of fighting for scraps, they get the freedom to invent—and the crowd gets a direct role in backing the boldest visions.

One to n is safe. Zero to One is messy, unpredictable, and world-changing. And right now, it’s exactly what we need most.

How to get one of the first VentureStaking® Licenses

If any of this resonates, we’d love for you to join our growing legion working to build a new system of capital — one designed to take on the biggest challenges humanity is facing. While we’re still slated for a summer 2026 launch, we moving ahead with education and preparation.

Your first step is to get a VentureStaking® License, which starts by downloading and completing FantasyStartup®, our startup investing simulation. Normally it’s $99, but we’ve launched a Scholarship Program so early adopters can get it free. You can sign up for the program here: doriot.com/play

We announced the program just this week and already have 250 requests — but we’re ready to expand based on demand.

Wishing you a focused and fulfilling weekend,

– Gerry ([email protected])