Silicon Valley Billionaires Go on a Pilgrimage to Trump's Mar-a-Lago to Bend the Knee

IBL News | New York

Silicon Valley billionaires from Meta, Amazon, Apple, Google, and OpenAI have traveled this month to President-elect Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida to bend the knee while promising to support his inaugural committee with $1 million donations.

The New York Times reported that tech leaders who traveled to hobnob with Mr. Trump face-to-face included Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, and Sergey Brin, a Google founder, who dined with Mr. Trump on Thursday.

Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook, shared a meal with Mr. Trump on Friday. And Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, planned to meet with Mr. Trump in the next few days.

Also, the leaders of Meta, Amazon, and OpenAI’s Sam Altman promised to support President-elect Donald J. Trump’s inaugural committee with seven-figure checks over the past week, often accompanied by a pilgrimage to Mar-a-Lago to bend the knee.

Tech companies and their top executives, reluctant for years to deal with Donald Trump, acknowledged the reality of getting business done in his new Washington.

“President Trump will lead our country into the age of A.I., and I am eager to support his efforts to ensure America stays ahead,” Sam Altman, who personally wrote a $1 million donation to Mr. Trump’s inaugural fund, said in a statement.