Chamath Palihapitiya Says Marijuana Should Never Have Been Legalized: Turning 'Our Kids Into Zombies'

Chamath Palihapitiya called marijuana "the most insidious of drugs", expressing concern over its effects on young people.

What Happened: In his post, Palihapitiya argued that while cannabis is legal in many states, its relative ease of access and discreet forms — vapes, gummies, and other easily available products — pose a particular risk to teens. He pointed to emerging scientific data, including an analysis in the Scientific American, that links high-potency cannabis use to mental health issues such as psychosis.

Palihapitiya wrote, "We should have never legalized it. But now that it is, I hope we do something to mandate standard toxicity and concentration labeling at a minimum. This stuff is turning a plurality of our kids into zombies."

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He shared excerpts from a first-person account detailing a teenager's progression from recreational marijuana use to a serious psychotic disorder, suggesting today's genetically modified strains are far stronger than those smoked by previous generations.

The referenced piece emphasizes the potential for young brains to be especially vulnerable to THC, highlighting studies that show an association between cannabis use and an increased risk of psychosis. It also recommends strategies for parents, such as fostering "cannabis literacy," maintaining open lines of communication, and seeking professional help promptly if warning signs appear.

Why It Matters: Palihapitiya isn’t posting about his concerns around marijuana labeling and the lack of dosage restrictions for the first time. The tech investor in a post in 2023 warned that modern cannabis is far stronger than in previous decades, referencing a Wall Street Journal report linking it to mental illness.

Palihapitiya, then, urged the FDA to mirror its tobacco oversight by systematically regulating marijuana's potency. He cautions that high-THC products risk inflicting "far more harm than good without such guardrails."

That said, it is worth noting that consistent with data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the University of Michigan's annual Monitoring the Future report finds cannabis use by young people at a 30-year low, based on responses from about 24,000 students in grades 8, 10 and 12 across the U.S.

A separate study by the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2021 also found that marijuana legalization laws are not associated with increased use among high school students.

Photo Courtesy: Kathy Hutchins on Shutterstock.com

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