Following President-elect Donald Trump’s victory, top tech executives have congratulated him and expressed their willingness to work with his administration.
What Happened: On Wednesday, Tesla Inc. TSLA, SpaceX, and Neuralink CEO Elon Musk, a key ally to Trump during his campaign, unsurprisingly congratulated the President-elect.
Trump has previously spoken about creating a position for Tesla CEO in a “department of government efficiency” to reduce the federal workforce.
Following the victory, Tesla shares surged over 14%, with investors hopeful that a Trump presidency would benefit the company.
Other tech behemoths such as Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN founder Jeff Bezos, Apple Inc. AAPL CEO Tim Cook, Alphabet Inc.’s GOOG GOOGL boss Sundar Pichai, Meta Platforms, Inc. META CEO Mark Zuckerberg congratulated Trump.
Bezos praised Trump’s win as an “extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory.” Before Election Day, Bezos and The Washington Post sparked controversy by withholding an endorsement for the first time in decades. Bezos defended the decision in an op-ed, citing concerns over “perception of bias.”
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Apple CEO and Google boss also congratulated Trump, expressing their eagerness to engage with the new administration.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Microsoft Corporation MSFT CEO Satya Nadella also took to X, formerly Twitter, to congratulate the President-elect. In the follow-up post, Altman also stressed the importance of the U.S. maintaining its leadership in AI development while upholding democratic values.
Zuckerberg also took to Threads, and acknowledged Trump’s “decisive victory.” He also expressed optimism about future opportunities.
Earlier in September, Trump said Zuckerberg told him during a call after the July assassination attempt that he will not vote for a Democrat in this election. However, a Meta spokesperson denied this, stating that Zuckerberg has not endorsed either Trump or Kamala Harris.
Others including Intel Corp. INTC CEO Pet Gelsinger, IBM IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, Cisco Systems CSCO CEO Chuck Robbins, Uber Technologies UBER CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, and Box Inc. BOX CEO Aaron Levie, also extended their congratulations to Trump.
On the other hand, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, a prominent supporter of Vice President Harris' campaign, while acknowledging Trump’s win, urged Americans to unite.
“I—and many others—raised alarms about the anti-democratic actions Donald Trump took during his first Presidency, and has promised to take this next time,” he said in a post on X, adding that Trump's supporters assured him that such behavior wouldn't continue.
Why It Matters: Previously, it was reported that technology investors are concerned that Trump’s presidency could lead to higher tariffs, straining U.S.-China relations and disrupting the tech supply chain.
Companies like Nvidia Corporation NVDA, Apple, and Tesla may face retaliation from China. Analysts also fear that the President-elect’s administration could slow the AI revolution.
GOP sweep of the White House and Congress could boost the stock market but negatively impact Big Tech, the analysts have stated.
Trump’s presidency could also hurt the broader EV market due to the loss of tax incentives. However, Tesla's size and position could provide an edge, as higher tariffs could limit competition from Chinese companies like BYD and Nio.
During Trump's first term, many tech leaders openly opposed him, resigning from advisory councils and challenging his policies.
However, they faced consequences, including Amazon's claim that it lost a $10 billion Pentagon contract due to Trump's alleged personal vendetta against Bezos, reported the New York Times.
This time, tech leaders are taking a different approach. Some, like Zuckerberg, who Trump threatened to put in jail, began aligning with the President-elect before the election. Former critics, including Bezos, have refrained from public criticism, the report noted.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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