Thiel, who co-founded PayPal and sits on Facebook's board after making an early investment, is an outspoken voice in the technology investment world is known for contrarian opinions and conservative leanings. He's backed defense contractors like Palantir and publicly supported former President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign for president.

On Wednesday, the Nixon session focused on China, and he was joined by former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien.

Thiel criticized Google for its work on artificial intelligence with Chinese universities, partially because of conversations he claimed to have with company insiders, according to a transcript of the event reviewed by CNBC.