--- title: "Tech CEOs Eagerly Grovel at the Feet of Trump" description: "Tech CEOs are practically tripping over each other to kiss the ring of reelected president Donald Trump." date: "2024-11-07" modified: "2024-11-07" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/tech-ceos-grovel-feet-trump" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "ai regulation" - "donald trump" - "regulations" --- # Tech CEOs Eagerly Grovel at the Feet of Trump ![Tech CEOs are practically tripping over each other to kiss the ring of reelected president Donald Trump.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* Tech CEOs are practically tripping over each other to kiss the ring of reelected president Donald Trump. It's a stark reversal of the situation eight years ago, at which point they had to be [summoned to a meeting room]() in Trump Tower, seemingly against their will. But as the [*New York Times* reports](), now tech luminaries including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Google CEO Sundar Pichai have reached out to the convicted felon well before election day, turning a blind eye to the dystopian future Trump personifies — and has [personally promised]() to realize. That's despite Trump [threatening to imprison]() "election fraudsters" — including Zuckerberg — as recently as August. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos [congratulated]() Trump "on an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory," not long after [strongarming]() the *Washington Post*, a newspaper he owns, into abandoning its traditional endorsement of a presidential candidate, in a move that was seen as transparently friendly to Trump. Even OpenAI Sam Altman bent the knee, congratulating president Trump and wishing "for his huge success in the job" in a [decidedly more muted tweet]() than Bezos'. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, meanwhile, has pretty much made supporting Trump [his entire personality](). In short, it's a grim new development, with Silicon Valley, which has historically leaned towards a more progressive ideology, doubling down on supporting an individual who's been convicted of [falsifying business records](), faced [accusations of sexual misconduct]() from over two dozen women, and vowed to [decimate sexual and reproductive health](). It's a stark reminder that moral convictions aren't part of the equation for tech leaders, who are primarily tasked with increasing shareholder value at all costs. What all of this groveling will lead to remains unclear at best. Trump has historically been extremely unpredictable in his governing and the tech policies, willing to throw any allies under the bus. To read the tea leaves, though, he *has* promised to repeal the existing [AI regulations implemented by outgoing President Joe Biden](), which were themselves largely [toothless rules](). That's despite AI companies repeatedly [calling for meaningful]() regulations surrounding the tech. Trump has also promised to place incredibly high tariffs on microchips, which could leave a massive dent in the competitive edge of the US tech sector. Given his extreme anti-immigrant stance, the tech sector's already limited labor pool could also be undermined by the possible revoking of work visas. In short, nobody — including almost certainly Trump himself — knows how any of this will shake out. Will it be a tech sector free-for-all, with already meager regulations falling to the wayside, or will Trump slam his scepter and call for greater limits on AI chatbots that have "gone woke," something his court jester Elon Musk has [previously called for]()? Following election day this week, markets [surged to record highs](), suggesting widespread optimism about another four years of Trump. However, whether tech leaders' prostrating in front of their new leader will pay off in the long term is far less clear. **More on Trump:** *[Trump Planning to Unleash Artificial Intelligence by Repealing Restrictions]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()