Apple CEO Tim Cook is set to visit Mar-a-Lago on Friday night to dine with President-elect Donald Trump, according to a report from The New York Times. Cook joins a string of other tech leaders who have visited Trump’s Florida club over the last several weeks.
Lead image from 2019 Mac Pro factory tour in Austin, TX with Cook and Trump.
As reported by The New York Times:
Mr. Cook and Mr. Trump are scheduled to dine on the patio at Mar-a-Lago later on Friday, according to two people with knowledge of the upcoming meeting. The two men had a warm relationship during Mr. Trump’s first term — much warmer than Mr. Trump’s with other tech executives, like Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg or Google’s Sundar Pichai, both of whom recently had their own meals with Mr. Trump.
This marks Cook’s first meeting with Trump since he was elected last month. Cook met with and earned praise from Trump multiple times during his first term, and other tech leaders are reportedly trying to imitate that strategy during Trump’s second term.
In October, Cook spoke with Trump about Apple’s ongoing battles in the European Union. Trump promised Cook he would not let the EU “take advantage” of American companies if he were to get elected.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg visited Mar-a-Lago to meet with Trump at the end of November. Google CEO Sundar Pichai met with Trump on Thursday. Trump has confirmed that he will meet with Amazon’s Jeff Bezos next week. Trump and Elon Musk have been inseparable over the last several months.
In addition to private dinners with Trump, tech companies are also donating to Trump’s inauguration fund. Both Meta and Amazon are donating $1 million to the fund. OpenAI’s Sam Altman is also making a $1 million donation.
Follow Chance: Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, and Mastodon.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
