Abstaining from alcohol becomes more prevalent among young entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley, explaining their decisions
Decline in Alcohol Consumption Among Silicon Valley Founders
A shift in drinking habits is taking place among young entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley, with many founders significantly reducing their alcohol consumption or choosing to live sober. This trend is primarily attributed to a focus on health, productivity, and the demands of intense work schedules.
The work-hard culture in Silicon Valley is a key factor in this change. Founders often work 80-90 hour weeks and view alcohol as incompatible with maintaining peak performance and the discipline needed in startup life.
Health and longevity are also top priorities for many founders. They track their bio metrics with devices like Oura rings, use supplements, and follow wellness influencers promoting longevity and sober lifestyles.
The traditional party culture of Silicon Valley is fading, replaced by social gatherings with non-alcoholic drinks, such as La Croix, resembling Prohibition-era speakeasies. Founders often practice situational sobriety—drinking less or abstaining, especially in San Francisco.
Within startup accelerators like Y Combinator, many young founders adopt sobriety or rare, moderate drinking to "lock in" for their cohorts' intensive work periods, creating a reinforcing environment.
This decline among Silicon Valley founders aligns with a broader national reduction in alcohol consumption among young adults, documented as the fourth consecutive year of decline in per capita alcohol use in the US.
Kieran White, co-founder of Curo, has been sober since he was young and compares the activity of a founder to that of a professional athlete. Boris Skurikhin, co-founder of Docket in his YC cohort, is 25 years old and drinks occasionally. The most dedicated of the "plugged-in", completely sober participants, according to Skurikhin, was around 21 years old.
Chris Pisarski, a young founder in Silicon Valley, drinks "very rarely", a glass of wine a month. House parties in Silicon Valley are filled with LaCroixs. The culture in Silicon Valley is health-conscious and focused on "grinding" (hard work).
Miranda Nover, co-founder of Fort, stated that for software, B2B SAAS, and AI founders, not drinking is a way to signal dedication to work. Alcohol consumption is also decreasing in Germany, albeit slowly.
Bank of America analysts predict per capita alcohol consumption in the USA will decrease by 1 percent by 2025. Cyril Gorlla, co-founder of CTGT, considers drinking a "poison" and believes it compromises a workweek of 80 to 90 hours. Chloe Samaha, co-founder of Bond, goes to house parties but sees many attendees with LaCroix sparkling water in hand.
In summary, young Silicon Valley founders are drinking less alcohol because they prioritize health, cognitive performance, and work productivity, and the regional startup culture increasingly reflects these values over past party-centric stereotypes.
- What about adopting a healthy-diets and fitness-and-exercise routine, similar to the discipline required in startup life?
- With a focus on science, could implementing sustainable-living practices in home-and-garden contribute to overall health-and-wellness?
- Like Kieran White, a co-founder who compares the life of a founder to that of a professional athlete, what if we approach our work and lifestyle with the same dedication to nutrients as we do to code?
- As the party culture of Silicon Valley fades, could we further enhance work productivity by creating workspaces that embody health-conscious lifestyles, perhaps even incorporating elements of science and sustainable-living into the design of our homes-and-garden?
