Klaus Friedrich Thiel (1938-2022) was a German-American chemical engineer, best known as the father of billionaire entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel. Born in Germany in 1938, Thiel earned a degree in chemical engineering and worked in the field before immigrating to the United States in the late 1960s with his wife, Susanne, and their infant son Peter, who was born in Frankfurt in 1967. The family's move was driven by professional opportunities for Klaus in the chemical industry. Upon arriving in the US, the Thiels initially settled in Cleveland, Ohio, where Klaus took up employment in his expertise area. The family later relocated to Johannesburg, South Africa, in the early 1970s due to Klaus's job with a mining company, before returning to the United States around 1977 and eventually making their home in Foster City, California. Throughout his career, Klaus worked for major corporations including Chevron, contributing to projects in chemical processing and mining engineering. He maintained a private life, with limited public information available beyond his professional background and family connections. Klaus Thiel passed away in 2022 at the age of 84. His immigration and career choices significantly influenced his son's upbringing and exposure to international environments, though Klaus himself avoided the spotlight associated with Peter's later success in Silicon Valley.