Sophia Bush Clarifies Conference Attendance, Denies Personal Connection to Peter Thiel

Sophia Bush has addressed speculation about her involvement with Dialog, the invitation-only society founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, after her name appeared in a leaked list from the organization's website.

The actress and activist took to Threads with a detailed statement explaining her attendance at the conference and her position on the matter.

Who Is Peter Thiel?

Thiel is an openly gay entrepreneur and investor who co-founded PayPal and Palantir Technologies. He has been a prominent supporter of Republican candidates and causes, backing Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and serving as an early and significant backer of JD Vance's 2022 U.S. Senate campaign.

Dialog, according to its website, brings together "leaders to discuss topics off-the-record."

Bush's Statement

Bush emphasized that she attends numerous conferences regularly throughout her career, spanning nearly two decades. She noted that her participation in the event centered on promoting "Another Body," a documentary she executive produced with Nia that examines deepfake abuse and advocates for action against it, as well as the DEFIANCE Act—legislation she has championed to hold offenders accountable and protect women and girls, who represent 97% of deepfake abuse victims.

"You can imagine my surprise to learn that a conference I was invited to as a guest who could counter the 'it's-all-progress' narrative of this seeming runaway AI race was founded by someone you could not pay me to be in a room with," Bush wrote.

She stressed that Thiel was not present during her attendance and was never mentioned during her experience. Bush also noted that Thiel has had no involvement with the organization for approximately 15 years.

"My values are very clear and consistent. I work to protect families—by defending democratic institutions and safeguarding basic human rights," she stated.

Bush reflected on the value of engaging with people who hold different worldviews, comparing it to her practice of meeting with both Democratic and Republican Congressional leaders when advocating on Capitol Hill. She described observing diverse perspectives discussed at the conference tables.

While acknowledging she wished she had researched the event more thoroughly beforehand, Bush maintained that she likely would have attended regardless. She underscored the importance of women advocating for women in such settings and raising concerns about emerging technology's impact.

"By the time I left the event early (had to fly to NC for another) I felt I had been heard, and I felt like I'd listened too," Bush wrote.

She concluded by expressing pride in her values and advocacy during the conference, noting the same sentiment toward fellow artists and activists who attended with her.

Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt also released a response after being named in the report.