Donald Trump, the 47th president-elect of the United States, is set to meet with Amazon founder and chairman Jeff Bezos next week. Attention is gathering on whether the two, who had a strained relationship during Trump’s first term, will reconcile ahead of Trump’s second administration.
According to The Hill, on Thursday, Trump attended the opening bell ceremony at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and stated, “Jeff Bezos is coming next week.”
The Hill reported that this statement suggests that Bezos will visit Mar-a-Lago in Florida, Trump’s residence and the headquarters for his transition team.
Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post (WP), blocked a pro-Kamala Harris (Democrat) editorial from the WP editorial ahead of the November 5 election.
The WP, generally considered liberal, has publicly supported Democratic candidates in every U.S. presidential election since 1976, except in 1988. Therefore, the WP‘s decision not to publish a pro-Democrat editorial became a significant issue in the U.S.
Some speculate that Bezos opposed the pro-Democrat editorial to improve his relationship with Trump, believing Trump had a strong chance of winning.
Even following Trump’s election victory, Bezos continued to express statements that effectively supported him. On December 4, he noted the President-elect’s significant efforts to reduce regulations and said he would assist him if possible.
Other Big Tech CEOs are also improving their relationships with Trump.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, met with Trump on November 26 and contributed $1 million to the President-elect’s transition fund.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has also praised Trump ahead of his second term.
In a Fox News interview on December 1, Altman emphasized the importance of the U.S. and its allies in developing cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, especially in the technology competition with China. He stated that Trump would excel in this area.
Altman highlighted the unique demands of AI, noting that it requires extensive infrastructure, including power, computer chips, and data centers, distinguishing it from other software types. He emphasized the necessity of building this infrastructure domestically to secure the world’s leading AI capabilities and maintain technological leadership.
