High-Profile Tech Leaders Attend Trump's State Banquet in the UK
During his second state trip to the U.K. this week, President Donald Trump has shown a clear shift in focus towards political influence in technology. This shift was evident at this week's banquet, where the guest list primarily consisted of tech leaders rather than Hollywood stars.
The dinner was a reunion of industry heavyweights from companies like Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, CoreWeave, and Salesforce. Notably absent was Elon Musk, once a close adviser nicknamed "First Buddy," who skipped both the inauguration and the recent dinner.
In September, Trump hosted a Silicon Valley dinner with 33 top executives, including Sam Altman and Tim Cook. Over the past year, big tech firms have been involved in government projects, such as building digital health tools and creating AI assistants for public services.
This visit marks a significant step in the U.S. and U.K.'s focus on innovation, particularly in areas like artificial intelligence, nuclear power, and quantum computing. The two countries signed the new Tech Prosperity Deal on Thursday, which aims to make the U.K. a hub for advanced technologies.
American tech companies have pledged around £31 billion ($42 billion) for AI infrastructure in the U.K., with new data centers from Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, and OpenAI, as well as multibillion-pound investments from CoreWeave and Salesforce.
However, Trump's administration has been critical of some tech practices. He has signed an "anti-woke" AI order and has asked the attorney general to review federal funding for companies with diversity, equity, and inclusion programs he considers unlawful. Trump has also criticized Apple's reliance on overseas supply chains.
At his inauguration earlier this year, tech leaders like Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg attended. Despite being invited, Elon Musk was conspicuously absent from both the inauguration and the recent dinner.
The new rockstars are the people building the tools that shape economies, governments, and daily life. Politics and technology are more intertwined than ever, with the future not about celebrity power but who controls innovation.
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