Protesters have demanded US$3 (€2.18) billion from Google to stop targeting the homes of senior employees. The booming technology scene in the San Francisco area has caused a spike in house prices and the cost of living.
In the latest demonstration by protest group The Counterforce, leaflets were distributed to neighbours of Google Ventures partner Kevin Rose calling him a parasite. The protesters also held up banners outside his home.
Rose later posted an image of one of the leaflets on Instagram, in which he was criticised for his role in "ravaging" the landscape of the area.
Part of the handout read "As a partner venture capitalist at Google Ventures, Kevin directs the flow of capital into the tech startup bubble that is destroying San Francisco. The start-ups that he funds bring the swarm of young entrepreneurs that have ravaged the landscapes of San Francisco and Oakland".
These leaflets were distributed to his neighbours (Image: via kevinrose on Instagram)
Later a blog post by The Counterforce said "We now make our first clear demand of Google. We demand that Google give three billion dollars to an anarchist organisation of our choosing".
"This money will then be used to create autonomous, anti-capitalist, and anti-racist communities throughout the Bay Area and Northern California".
It said the communities would have free housing, "solving" the housing crisis in the Bay area. Rose, who founded news aggregator Digg and also invested in mapping site Foursquare, later responded on Twitter.
He wrote "My house was protested today by anti-tech folks, they had a large banner saying 'Kevin Rose Parasite'. They recorded video on an Android phone and said they were going to post it to YouTube, which I thought odd".
"That said, I did agree with them that we need to solve rising rents, keep the SF culture, and crack down on landlords booting folks out. SF is such a great place, definitely need to figure out a way to keep the diversity".
SF is such a great place, definitely need to figure out a way to keep the diversity
— Kevin Rose (@kevinrose) April 6, 2014
In January, The Counterforce protested outside the home of Anthony Levandowski, who works in the experimental Google X laboratory. Protesters have also disrupted the routes of staff shuttle buses.
