Peter Thiel's Private Club Dialog Secretly Ranks Members by Wealth and Fame

Secret Rating System

WIRED has obtained internal documents revealing how Dialog, the private network co-founded by investor Peter Thiel and data broker Auren Hoffman in 2006, grades its members and prospective attendees on a hidden A, B, C scale. The classification is based on wealth, fame, and influence. Of 192 dossiers examined, 130 are tagged as members; the rest are prospects. Only one in seven received the top C grade, reserved for the most famous and influential. Most people – 141 out of 192 – got a B, while the A tier appears assigned to older, less notable members.

Wealth and Fame as Criteria

Staff notes attached to about 50 dossiers show that wealth is a common justification. One investor is summed up by the $30 billion in assets under management; another is dismissed with "Small AUM." Fame is a close second. Actor Josh Brolin, who has never attended a Dialog retreat, is classified as a VIP largely due to his 3.4 million Instagram followers and role in Avengers films.

Political Leanings and Matchmaking

Dialog also tracks invitees' apparent political leanings. While members are urged to disclose their own views, staff make independent assessments that sometimes differ. Of 165 people who disclosed politics for an August event, more than half identified as left-leaning, but those on the right were more than twice as likely to receive a C grade. The club also runs an internal matchmaking system: roughly 10% opted into a singles pool, and over three-quarters have algorithm-suggested matches. A "do-not-pair" list includes spouses, professional associates, and some unexplained cases.

Pricing and Reactions

Grades partly determine event fees, which can reach tens of thousands of dollars. Bottom-grade attendees pay full price about 70% of the time, compared with about a quarter for VIPs. The leaked data includes personal information of nearly 200 prominent people, such as home addresses, phone numbers, and photos. Dialog states it is nonpartisan and aims to bring together diverse top minds, but the secrecy has drawn criticism.