Protests against the Axel Springer Award for Peter Thiel in Berlin

In Berlin, several hundred people demonstrated against the presentation of the Axel Springer Award to US investor Peter Thiel, which was planned for this Thursday evening. They demonstrated in front of the Axel Springer House under the motto Thiel shall not pass (“Thiel won’t pass”) – an allusion to a quote from the character Gandalf from Lord of the Rings. “The wars of today are being waged with software from which Peter Thiel earns money,” said a spokeswoman for the protesters to the epd news agency.

The German-born tech billionaire is co-founder of the Palantir software, which is used for data analysis in the military and police sectors, among other things. Thiel, who is an important supporter of US President Donald Trump, also repeatedly drew attention to himself with controversial statements, such as whether freedom and democracy are compatible. Thiel also justifies his views, which are right-wing conservative and libertarian, with references to biblical mythology.

Springer Verlag said it wanted to honor Thiel for “having a lasting impact on the technological, economic and social debates of our time.” Springer boss Mathias Döpfner said that Thiel was a “particularly courageous spirit of contradiction.” He sees software like Palantir as a “protecting force of democracy.” According to the Springer Group, the Axel Springer Award honors personalities who, as entrepreneurs, are changing markets and taking on social responsibility in an outstanding way.

This article will continue to be updated.