As the U.S. presidential election approaches, CEOs of major U.S. tech companies seek to improve their relationships with former President Donald Trump. On Sunday, CNN reported that these Big Tech leaders are reaching out to Trump in anticipation of his potential return to power.
According to the report, Trump revealed in a recent podcast interview with Joe Rogan on Friday that Google CEO Sundar Pichai made a phone call, expressing surprise about his campaign visit to McDonald’s. Previously, Trump had claimed that Vice President Kamala Harris’s experience working at McDonald’s was fabricated. Following this remark, he worked part-time on the 20th at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s, making fries and taking orders.
Trump recounted that during their call, “He said, ‘This is the biggest thing we’ve had in years.'”
Recently, Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, also reportedly reached out to Trump. A source described the interaction as “a conversation to check in.”
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, reportedly called Trump last summer following an attempted assassination incident, commending his crisis management as “badass.”
According to the Associated Press, Trump also spoke with executives from Blue Origin, the space company founded by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, on Friday.
These actions by Big Tech CEOs can be seen as efforts to mend relations with Trump in light of his potential return to office, especially given the competitive nature of the upcoming U.S. presidential election. While the CEOs of Google, Amazon, and Apple are generally less involved in politics compared to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who openly supports Trump, CNN notes that their actions could still impact the stock market and the outlook for the U.S. economy.
In this context, some in business interpret these moves as acknowledging Trump’s potential re-election. A source close to Trump told CNN, “There are some that seem to be waking up to the fact that like, ‘Holy sh*t, this guy might get elected again. I don’t want to have him, his administration, going after us,'” “What he’s saying out loud, I think they hear, and they’re taking it seriously.”
CNN reported that Trump is relishing the situation. He boasts about his conversations with these CEOs during media interviews and campaign events while also praising their companies.
He has suggested that if elected, the circumstances for Big Tech companies facing regulations and fines under the Biden administration could change. Trump conveyed a conciliatory message to IT companies: “Let me tell you: All of those companies will be set free if you have the right president.”
