Tech Leaders Take Turns Flattering Trump At White House Dinner

Several of nan astir powerful business leaders successful nan state gathered astir a array past nighttime to fawn complete President Donald Trump for his AI policies.

“You and your policies are really helping a lot,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told nan president. AMD CEO Lisa Su praised “the magnitude of acceleration that we’ve seen conscionable successful nan fewer short months that nan management has been successful place.” Oracle CEO Safra Catz struck a statement of adoration astatine “the truth that you are our president” and that Trump quickly recognized nan value of AI. “You’ve unleashed American invention and productivity — each nan activity you’re doing successful fundamentally each furniture station successful summation to what’s coming retired of nan White House is making it imaginable for America to win.” 

“Thank you for being specified a pro-business and pro-innovation president,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman lauded. “It’s a very refreshing change. We’re very excited to spot what you’re doing to make each of our companies and our full state truthful successful.” He added that his institution would “invest a ton successful nan United States.”

The information of flattery came during nan nationalist information of a meal Trump hosted astatine nan White House Thursday pinch CEOs from galore of nan apical tech companies moving successful AI, which besides included those from Apple, Google, and Meta. Trump made a constituent of asking respective of nan CEOs really overmuch they’re spending successful nan US successful nan adjacent fewer years, and seemed pleased aft they threw retired numbers successful nan hundreds of billions. Earlier connected Thursday, First Lady Melania Trump hosted a task unit gathering connected AI acquisition wherever galore of those companies pledged investments to amended nan younker and workforce connected really to usage nan caller technology.

Each of nan CEOs guidelines to summation — aliases suffer — from Trump and his policies

Tech leaders’ beingness astatine nan White House has go a comparatively commonplace occurrence during this administration. Many of nan CEOs who attended Thursday’s meal also showed up for Trump’s inauguration and donated to his inaugural fund. Zuckerberg had met pinch Trump successful nan West Wing soon earlier nan government’s antitrust proceedings against his institution began. On Thursday, Zuckerberg — whom anterior to their caller closeness, Trump has antecedently threatened to jail — sat correct adjacent to nan president, who teased Zuckerberg astatine 1 constituent of having nan opportunity to motorboat his ain governmental profession pinch a consequence to a reporter’s question.

Each of nan CEOs guidelines to summation — aliases suffer — from Trump and his policies. Those see everything from tariffs connected semiconductors and different products, permits, entree to resources for illustration energy to powerfulness energy-intensive AI, and more. Many of them are already engaged successful ineligible battles pinch nan management complete different parts of their businesses. Trump acknowledged Google’s “very bully day” Wednesday erstwhile a judge denied Trump’s DOJ nan astir fierce antitrust remedies it had asked for successful its monopoly hunt lawsuit against nan company. “Biden was nan 1 that prosecuted that lawsuit,” Trump said, leaving retired that his first management had brought nan complaint, and his 2nd management litigated nan remedies trial. “It’s a agelong process,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai said. “Appreciate that your management had a constructive speech and we were capable to get it to immoderate resolution.” One aliases some sides could still entreaty nan ruling.

Apple CEO Tim Cook, whose products are mostly assembled successful China and who seemed to beryllium nan uncommon business leader successful Trump’s first word who managed to locomotion a good statement of staying connected his bully side, seemed eager to support his bully will while seated crossed nan array from Trump Thursday. “It’s unthinkable to beryllium among everyone here, peculiarly you and nan First Lady,” Cook told Trump. “I’ve ever enjoyed having meal and interacting.” He thanked Trump for “setting nan reside specified that we could make a awesome finance successful nan United States” and added that it “says a batch astir your attraction and your leadership.”

Later, erstwhile a newsman asked astir Trump’s plans to tariff semiconductors, Trump reiterated his idea that he’d deploy a “fairly important tariff” that could beryllium waived if a institution was readying to build successful nan US. “I’d opportunity Tim Cook would beryllium successful beautiful bully shape,” Trump said.