Tech super PAC startups could tap billions

A for-profit university bankrolled by prominent tech firms and co-founded by futurist Ray Kurzweil is behind four separate super political action committees or PACs formed, according to interviews and documents filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Randi Willis, an official at Singularity University, confirmed to the Center for Public Integrity that leaders at her institution will later in 2014 begin determining how to best use these new political committees, which could tap into the wealth of tech industry titans.

"Instead of waiting for people in office to come to us, the idea is, 'Let's put people in office,'" said Willis, the executive programs director for the university who also serves as the super PACs' treasurer. "We have a number of millionaires and billionaires who come through here and who we believe would consider contributing."

While hardly a household name, Singularity University is supported by a slew of corporations that are. Its listed "corporate founders" include Google, Cisco, Genentech, Nokia and Autodesk. Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have personally associated themselves with Singularity University. "Corporate partners" include General Electric, the Credit Union Roundtable and pharmaceutical company Celgene.