ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 17: Alexander Volkanovski of Australia prepares to face Ilia Topuria … [+] in their featherweight title fight as Mark Zuckerberg looks on during UFC 298 at Honda Center on February 17, 2024 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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Fresh from climbing to third place on Forbes’ wealth rankings with $217.7 billion, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took to Joe Rogan’s podcast this week with a telling admission. His revelation of a renewed, unabashed quest to uphold ‘masculine energy’ in the corporate setting was not just fodder for a juicy headline – it was a moment of frank truth about Silicon Valley’s open secret.
Zuckerberg’s Wealth and Masculine Energy Comment Spark Debate
While the narrative of ‘transformation’ makes for compelling headlines, Silicon Valley has always been a masculine enclave. The backlash to Zuckerberg’s Rogan appearance only underscores the performance. Behind the casual hoodies and ping-pong tables lies an industry built on traditionally masculine principles – competition, dominance, and aggressive growth have long been the unspoken uniform for success. Facebook’s original motto to ‘move fast and break things’ wasn’t just a development philosophy – it was a manifesto for tech’s inherent masculine ethos, where disruption and dominance trump consideration of consequences. Is the emperor wearing new clothes, or finally admitting to the ones he’s been wearing all along?
This question comes at a particularly significant juncture in the ongoing discussion about the intersection of politics and technology. In an industry racing to shape humanity’s future through artificial intelligence while facing renewed political pressure, Zuckerberg’s words reflect a crucial contradiction: tech’s innovative exterior masks deeply conventional beliefs about power and leadership. With Trump moments away from taking back the keys to the worlds most powerful office and culture wars intensifying, women’s autonomy is undoubtedly facing new threats nationally, while tech’s male-dominated power structure remains firmly intact.
BATH, UNITED KINGDOM – JANUARY 21: In this photo illustration a man looks at his phone displaying … [+] the social media Twitter page for Andrew Tate, on January 21, 2023 in Bath, England. British-US former professional kickboxer and controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan Tate are currently detained in Romania for alleged human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal organisation. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
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The comments land amid a rising tide of what critics call the ‘manarchy’ – a digital ecosystem where masculine supremacy thrives under the guise of self-improvement. From Andrew Tate’s viral manifestos to Reddit’s TheRedPill communities, this online manosphere has gained significant momentum, particularly among young tech workers. A new study from Dublin City University’s Anti-Bullying Centre shows social media platforms are rapidly amplifying misogynistic and male supremacist content. Against this backdrop, Zuckerberg’s casual embrace of “masculine energy” reads less like personal growth and more like an echo of this broader cultural shift, legitimized by one of tech’s most powerful voices.
Tech Industry Gender Gap: The Numbers Tell the Story
The industry’s data backs up this reality. Across major tech companies, women hold only 28% of leadership positions in 2023, a number that has barely shifted in the past decade. At startups, female founders received just 2% of venture capital funding last year, while even AI – tech’s newest frontier – shows women representing only 22% of researchers globally.
A 2023 Harvard Business Review study also found that male entrepreneurs were 62% more likely to receive funding when pitching identical business plans as female counterparts. Silicon Valley’s double standards are well-documented: the same aggressive confidence that marks male founders as ‘visionary’ brands women as ‘difficult’ or ‘overconfident.’ Women often navigate an impossible tightrope, where likeability and leadership are deemed mutually exclusive.
Leadership Energy: Beyond Gender Stereotypes
This masculine template extends beyond initial funding and seeps into the lived experience of workplace culture itself. Even the language displays an inherently masculine narrative, where companies are often described as “crushing it” or “killing it,” with engineers engaging in “hackathons” and “death marches.” So while Zuckerberg claims the vilification of masculine energy in recent times, it’s somewhat evident that this ‘bro-like’’ energy has always been here, underpinning our conversations about rising tech and placing them against a subliminally masculine backdrop.
AI’s Gender Problem: The Next Frontier
As artificial intelligence emerges as tech’s next frontier, these dynamics take on a new urgency. The same masculine-coded approaches that built social media platforms are now shaping AI development, with potentially far-reaching consequences. A 2023 UNESCO report found that gender biases in AI teams directly correlate to biases in AI systems themselves – a sobering thought as these technologies increasingly shape our world.
With tech increasingly shaping every aspect of modern life – from how we work and communicate to how we think and make decisions – this moment of candor from one of its most powerful leaders demands attention. The question isn’t whether Zuckerberg needs more masculine energy. It’s whether this entrenched culture can evolve to meet the complex challenges ahead.
There’s also a deeper question here about what we value in leaders. The equation of leadership with traditionally masculine traits ignores the full spectrum of human capabilities. Empathy, collaboration, emotional intelligence – often stereotyped as feminine traits – are crucial leadership skills, supported by extensive research. A 2022 Gallup study found that teams with managers demonstrating high emotional intelligence showed 40% less turnover and 17% higher productivity. Meanwhile, the World Economic Forum’s 2023 Future of Jobs Report identifies emotional intelligence and collaborative leadership among the top skills needed for the next decade of technological advancement. In an industry built on understanding human behavior and connection, these capabilities are particularly vital for navigating AI development and social platform impacts.
TOPSHOT – Tesla CEO Elon Musk (R) jumps on stage as he joins former US President and Republican … [+] presidential candidate Donald Trump during a campaign rally at site of his first assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania on October 5, 2024. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
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Breaking the Silicon Ceiling
The tech industry’s fascination with “masculine energy” isn’t just about gender. It’s really about power. It’s about who gets to lead, who gets to innovate, and who gets to shape our technological future. When industry leaders like Zuckerberg frame leadership in masculine terms, they’re not just expressing personal preference – they’re reinforcing long-standing frameworks of exclusion while simultaneously retreating from diversity initiatives.
Despite compelling evidence that diverse companies perform better – with McKinsey reporting that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity are 25% more likely to outperform their peers – 2024 has seen a sleuth of tech companies dismantling their DEI programs. Against the backdrop of court challenges and political pressure, initiatives designed to create more inclusive workplaces are being quietly shelved. The timing of Zuckerberg’s masculine ‘rebrand’, coinciding with this industry-wide retreat from diversity efforts, signals more than personal transformation – it’s Silicon Valley’s power structure dropping its pretense at precisely the moment when we can least afford it.
And while Zuckerberg is right that energy matters in leadership, the challenges facing tech demand a broader spectrum of approaches. At this pivotal moment – as AI reshapes society, mental health crises deepen, and social media rewires human connection – the data suggests success requires more than any single leadership style. Research consistently shows that diverse perspectives, varied experiences, and different approaches lead to better problem-solving and innovation. The question isn’t where we go from here – it’s whether Silicon Valley can evolve its leadership model to meet the unprecedented challenges that lie ahead.