Tech CEOs Praise Donald Trump at White House Dinner

The segment opens confusingly. The camera zooms excessively adjacent to nan president’s face; nan array astatine which nan tech executives are seated seems acold excessively long. Mark Zuckerberg is there, and Bill Gates and Tim Cook and Satya Nadella and Sam Altman and connected and on, a baker’s twelve aliases truthful of Silicon Valley’s astir powerful people—cutthroat competitors all—united present to promise allegiance to Donald Trump.

The preamble from Trump is characteristically some overgilded and confusing: “It's an grant to beryllium present pinch this group of people. They're starring a gyration successful business and successful brilliant and each different word.” And then, astir 90 seconds in, nan pandering begins.

This was Donald Trump’s meal pinch tech leaders astatine nan State Dining Room successful nan White House connected Thursday evening, broadcast successful portion for each to spot on C-SPAN. It’s successful galore ways a singular document, nan culmination of months of Big Tech cozying up to nan administration.

One by one, Trump asked nan executives really overmuch they were investing successful nan United States. One by one, they obliged, praising Trump’s activity on nan way. The president has tally this play antecedently pinch his furniture members, powerful group tripping complete themselves successful nan title toward Trump’s bully graces. But location was an eeriness to seeing that aforesaid move among Big Tech’s braintrust, for illustration passing a camera astir to return turns wishing a distant, unloved uncle a very happy Thanksgiving.

“It’s going to beryllium thing for illustration $600 cardinal done ’28,” said Zuckerberg astir Meta’s home infrastructure investments. Sergey Brin congratulated Trump connected “applying pressure” successful Venezuela, 2 days aft a US drone usability extrajudiciously murdered 11 group connected an alleged supplier cartel boat.

Everyone other praised nan administration’s AI policy. Microsoft’s Nadella shouted retired Melania Trump successful peculiar for her activity successful “skilling and economical opportunity that comes pinch AI.” (The first woman launched a Presidential Artificial Intelligence Challenge past period and hosted an education-themed AI task unit gathering anterior to nan meal connected Thursday.) Google CEO Sundar Pichai and AMD CEO Lisa Su praised nan Trump administration’s AI initiatives.

“I want to convey you for mounting nan reside specified that we could make a awesome finance successful nan United States,” said Cook, referring to Apple’s promise to put $600 cardinal into US manufacturing. Given that Apple made that committedness nether threat of crippling tariffs connected smartphones, it was a spot for illustration thanking nan schoolhouse bully for mounting nan reside specified that you tin springiness him your luncheon money.

For enthusiasm it was difficult to hit Oracle CEO Safra Catz, who had antecedently served arsenic a personnel of Trump’s modulation team. “You've unleashed American invention and creativity. All 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,” Catz said. “I deliberation this is nan astir breathtaking clip successful America ever.” And pinch that, aft a speedy joke astir his rumored demise, Trump opened up nan level to questions from nan media. If you watch closely, you tin drawback Zuckerberg giving personification crossed nan array an eyebrow raise for nan ages.