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A lot of news media are writing about Palmer Luckey, founder of Oculus, to have backed Nimble America, a pro-Trump group. He would have acknowledged this on Reddit under a pseudonym rather than his normal account and would've confirmed this to 'The Daily Beast'

Luckey confirmed to The Daily Beast he penned the posts under his Reddit pseudonym.

but the article also states

he is also listed as the vice-president of the group on its website.

which does not seem to be the case.

Reasons for skepticism

Palmer Luckey would've allegedly spoken extremely openly with the Daily Beast, but all other media report that they have received no reaction and none of his official accounts have posted anything. Palmer Luckey has a very well known Reddit account, yet he didn't use it when making these posts, and the pseudonym would've been provided by Nimble America, a group that allegedly describes itself as dedicated to "shitposting". Add to that the controversial nature of Donald Trump and his unpopularity especially between the well educated and in the tech scene and a healthy dose of skepticism seems extremely warranted.

Honestly, all of this sounds awfully much as a setup by Nimble America to get some attention.

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    'Businessman backs Republican politician' is hardly news. Why do we think this even needs checking?
    – DJClayworth
    Sep 23, 2016 at 13:05
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    We aren't talking about 'a republican politician', we're talking about Donald Trump, easily the most controversial presidential candidate in US history. Add to that the suddenly extremely open disclosure towards a single media website and no official word through any official channels and the involvement of a group which allegedly describes themselves as dedicated to "shitposting" and a healthy dose of skepticism seems very welcome.
    – David Mulder
    Sep 23, 2016 at 14:53
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    @DJClayworth Which I did, but all of them claim that their only source is The Daily Beast. Why do you think I am skeptical in the first place?
    – David Mulder
    Sep 23, 2016 at 15:03
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    @DJClayworth Could I please ask you to read the last comment I wrote? The first three words are "which I did". I wouldn't have posted this here if I had been able to find sources confirming or denying the claim.
    – David Mulder
    Sep 23, 2016 at 15:21
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    @DJClayworth As I just said in my last comment I wouldn't have posted this here if I had been able to find sources confirming this claim. Like literally 5 minutes ago... everybody referred to the same singular source of the claim as the Daily Beast.
    – David Mulder
    Sep 23, 2016 at 15:27

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I kind of messed up by presenting a different claim in the text of my question and in the title, so lets address both:

Did Palmer Luckey write the posts on reddit and do the interview with The Daily Beast?

Luckey claims otherwise:

I did not write the "NimbleRichMan" posts, nor did I delete the account. Reports that I am a founder or employee of Nimble America are false.

Source: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10209141115659366&id=1063830478

Did Palmer Luckey donate to pro-Trump group?

Yes

Here’s more background: I contributed $10,000 to Nimble America because I thought the organization had fresh ideas on how to communicate with young voters through the use of several billboards. I am a libertarian who has publicly supported Ron Paul and Gary Johnson in the past, and I plan on voting for Gary in this election as well.

Source: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10209141115659366&id=1063830478

Some reservation

This is Palmer Luckey's own official response on one of his official channels (Facebook). There has been some skepticism whether this reply is truthful, or whether this is something he has gotten himself forced into after the media backslash. Either way, it would be up to The Daily Beast right now to either acknowledge that they did not properly verify that the person they interviewed was Palmer Luckey, or alternatively that they disclose their side of the story.

There has been a minor response on Twitter from The Daily Beast so far, where they published screenshots showing that the mails they received are not in line with Palmer's public statement. They however blacked out the email address Palmer would've used, so there is no way to check whether that's actually his.

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