WASHINGTON (TNND) — The list of tech executives heading to South Florida to meet with President-elect Donald Trump at his private residence is growing. The reason is simple, they want to be on his good side when his second administration begins at noon on January 20.
CEOs of TikTok, Meta, Apple and Google have already gone to Mar-a-Lago and Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, who’s donated to Democrats in the past and whose wife served as an ambassador during the Obama administration, is expected to meet with Trump on Tuesday.
“Silicon Valley has leaned Democratic, I think that’s clearly true, but there’s also a lot of frustration that Joe Biden’s administration spent more time trashing the U.S. tech industry rather than championing it. So I think what you’re seeing is some hope on the part of tech leaders that Trump could turn that around,” said Adam Kovacevich, founder and CEO of the left-leaning tech industry policy coalition Chamber of Progress.
The tech industry knows it has some work to do in winning over a Republican party, Trump included, that’s accused Big Tech of censoring conservative speech. With Republicans set to take control of the House, Senate and White House, in theory, they’ll have enough power to pass laws that could upend how tech companies operate, from revoking liability protections to imposing strict privacy laws.
Based on Trump’s actions during his first administration, there’s a pretty straightforward way to avoid being the target of that, Kovacevich said.
“Trump’s first administration often regulated companies based on how nice the company was to him personally. You know, he brought an antitrust lawsuit against Time Warner because he didn’t like CNN’s coverage. I think what you’re seeing is companies wanting to get on Trump’s good side,” Kovacevich said.
There’s a chance it’s already working. During a press conference Monday, Trump said, “The first term everybody was fighting me. In this term, everybody wants to be my friend. I don’t know. My personality changed or something.”
Tech leaders are eager to have a seat at the table, especially when the incoming administration sets policy on artificial intelligence. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and AI startup Perplexity are each expected to donate $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. Amazon and Meta also contributed the same amount.
“There’s an old expression that in Washington if you’re not at the table then you’re on the menu,” Kovacevich said. “A lot of the tech industry’s biggest problems right now are a need to cut red tape, build more data centers, hire more engineers, deploy new technologies like AI and driverless cars and most people in tech would love to see Trump cut through that red tape.”
Founder of Amazon and Blue Sky Jeff Bezos said as much earlier this month when asked about his thoughts on the incoming administration.
“(Trump) seems to have a lot of energy around reducing regulation. And my point of view, if I can help him do that, I’m gonna help him,” Bezos said.
On Monday, Trump confirmed Bezos will visit Mar-a-Lago sometime this week.
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