Where is Richard's thumb drive?
In the finale of Silicon Valley Richard tells interviewers that he still has the entire code base of Pied Piper's distributed internet on a thumb drive. But he is not able to locate it.
My question is two-fold.
Did Jian-Yang steal the thumb drive?
Are there going to be more seasons about the missing thumb drive or is it just a symbol of how people steal each others' techs in actual Silicon Valley?
Best Answer
Well I have found my answer and it's directly from Alec Berg's Interview with Entertainment Weekly
The episode — and series — ends with a cliffhanger of sorts as Richard is unable to find the thumb drive. What did you like about going in that direction? Was it your way of leaving the door open for a continuation in the future, or just more of a fun little thing for fans to theorize about?
I will be perfectly candid that we have no grand plan to return, but we were joking about it, like, “Oh, that’s the Silicon Valley movie, the search for the thumb drive.” We just like the idea that they create this doomsday device and then, in the end, Richard forgot where he put it. It just seemed like a funny place to end. But if it leads to something… look, I love this cast and I love this show, and if there were an opportunity at some point and it felt right to do more with them, I’d do it in a heartbeat. But there are no plans to do that, and that was not the design or seed of any new project…until it is!
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Where did the Pied Piper USB Go?
The episode ends with Richard attempting to show the documentary crew the hard drive containing the Pied Piper compression algorithm but fails to find it as the credits roll. The last place the orange USB hard drive is seen is plugged into computer equipment at the very top of the Salesforce Tower.Who stole the Pied Piper thumb drive?
The scariest possibilities of all, however, is that Jian Yang (Jimmy Yang) stole the thumb drive. Though there is no way to quite explain how he could have done it. After all, he left in a hurry when he realized Erlich Bachman (TJ Miller) was rich because of PiperCoin.What happened Pied Piper?
In Silicon Valley's penultimate episode, Pied Piper lost out on a mega-payout deal to put its technology onto AT&T's phones and network because of a powerful but flawed Chinese knockoff.The SECRET to making Richard GOOD in Rise of Kingdoms 2022
More answers regarding where is Richard's thumb drive?
Answer 2
Unknown but not Jian-Yang
It's not revealed who (if anyone) has taken the thumb drive. I think the missing thumb drive is just meant to show that Richard still is not entirely in control, and there still is some danger than someone else may release the Pied Piper AI on the world.
However it's very unlikely to be taken by Jian-Yang. Jian-Yang is impersonating Erlich Bachman and looks like he has taken all his money.
We can see this from the conversation between Richard, Monica and Jian-Yang at the party:
Jian-Yang: Richard, congratulations. It's your very close friend Jian-Yang, and I would like you to give me free shares of Pied Piper.
Richard: Okay, Jian-Yang. Uh well, you had plenty of opportunity to invest.
Monica: Still do. Yeah, you can buy Pipercoin.
Jian-Yang: Monica, two men are talking business. You can find your broom and fly away.
Monica: Suit yourself. I just checked the ledger, and the coin we issued to Erlich was just sold for $20 million.
Jian-Yang: Richard, is the mean lady right? Errich is now fat and rich?
Richard: Uh, yeah, I guess.
Jian-Yang: Where is he?
Richard: I don't know. Tibet still, maybe.
Jian-Yang immediately walks off and discards his Pied Piper hat on the floor.
Then at the end of the episode, when the documentary crew try to reach Erlich:
Interviewer: Are you Erlich Bachman?
Jian-Yang: Yes. I'm Errich Bachman. I can show you ID. That's my face. I was a-fat, but now, I'm a-not fat.
The implication of this scene is that Jian-Yang is rich off Erlich's $20 million, not somehow off the thumb-drive.
Will there be more seasons about the missing drive?
S06E07 Exit Event was advertised as the Series Finale, and much took place as a documentary 10 years into the future. It seems likely that there will be no more episodes.
Answer 3
Well, I feel the thumb drive was stolen by Monica, Dinesh, Gilfoyle.
Remember those two are running a "Successful security company" and Monica works for the "NSA".
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: RODNAE Productions, RODNAE Productions, Jose Mueses, Pixabay