People who have tried psychedelic drugs, such as psilocybin (found in magic mushrooms) and DMT (found in ayahuasca), report altered states of consciousness that can lead to profound introspective experiences. In fact, psychedelics can have such an impact on one’s mental state that some people even make major changes in their lives after a ‘trip’ – like the eight Silicon Valley CEOs who apparently quit their jobs after taking psychedelics.

“Quit their jobs as CEO”

This anecdote about the eight CEOs was shared on the social media platform X by Austen Allred, the San Francisco-based CEO and co-founder of BloomTech.

“Of the Silicon Valley founders I know who went on some of the psychedelic self-discovery trips, almost 100% quit their jobs as CEO within a year. Could be random anecdotes, but be careful with that stuff,” Allred advised his X followers.

The CEO of BloomTech was responding to a post by X user Ashlee Vance when he made the claim. Vance revealed that a venture capitalist had told him: “We’ve lost several really good founders to ayahuasca. They came back and just didn’t care about much anymore.”

In the comments section of the post, Allred said he knew of eight CEOs who quit their jobs after psychedelic trips. Asked “How many do you think are happier now?,” he said that four seem happier after stepping down as CEOs.

Social media reacts

Allred’s post has gone viral with over 3.3 million views and hundreds of comments.

People in the comments section theorised that the founders who quit their jobs must have already been dissatisfied, and the psychedelics only served to bring out their underlying frustrations.

“If ambition makes you consistently miserable, psychedelics help you understand the price you’re paying. You lose a taste for it,” wrote one person.

“Careful with the Ayahuasca or the unfulfilling jobs?” another asked.

“Being a CEO is meaningless if other parts of your life are not fulfilling. This becomes quite obvious when you have deep (and often traumatic) experiences. Quitting then becomes the natural next step. Life is not about status,” an X user opined.