Tech C.E.O.s Spent Millions Courting Trump. It Has Yet to Pay Off. - The New York Times


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Tech CEOs' Failed Investment in Trump

Major tech companies invested heavily in President Trump's second term, hoping for favorable policies. Their efforts included significant donations, lavish parties, and collaboration on projects. However, this strategy has yielded disappointing results.

Negative Impacts of Trump's Policies

Trump's policies have negatively impacted the tech industry. Key examples include:

  • Tariffs: Imposed tariffs have increased costs for companies like Apple and Amazon.
  • Funding Cuts: Federal funding for crucial research areas such as AI and quantum computing has been reduced.
  • Regulatory Scrutiny: The administration continues to pursue aggressive regulatory actions, including a landmark antitrust trial against Meta.
  • Immigration Concerns: The clampdown on immigration threatens the tech industry's access to skilled workers.

The combined market value of major tech companies has significantly decreased since the inauguration.

Shift in Approach

This approach contrasts sharply with the tech industry's stance during Trump's first term. The about-face in strategy shows an attempt to cultivate a more favorable relationship with the administration.

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The biggest technology companies and their chief executives donated millions to President Trump’s inauguration, hosted black-tie parties and dinners in his honor, and allowed him to announce and take credit for new multibillion-dollar manufacturing projects.

But less than three months into the president’s second term, Mr. Trump has hardly returned their lavish gestures with favors.

The sweeping tariffs he imposed last week will squeeze Apple’s iPhone supply chain and make it much more expensive for Amazon, Meta, Google and Microsoft to build supercomputers to power artificial intelligence. The president has slashed federal funding for research into emerging technologies like A.I. and quantum computing. His immigration clampdown has incited fears that he will cut off pipelines for tech talent.

The Trump administration has also signaled that it will continue an aggressive regulatory stance on reining in the power of the biggest tech companies, beginning next week with a landmark antitrust trial to break up Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.

Since the inauguration, the combined market value of Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta and Microsoft has fallen 22 percent to $10 trillion. And the tech-heavy Nasdaq index is down 21 percent.

The efforts to court Mr. Trump are a far stretch from the industry’s approach to his first administration, when many tech leaders were openly hostile toward the president. With an about-face and flattery, executives hoped this time around that Mr. Trump might show tech more deference, including it in his efforts to deregulate industries like energy and autos.

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