Silicon Valley, historically in favor of the Democratic Party, is delighted with the election of Donald Trump. Tim Cook, Mark Zuckerberg, Satya Nadella, Sundar Pichai… The leaders of American technology giants were quick to congratulate the 47th President of the United States, and it is not by chance.
Much more rigorous antitrust regulation
Under the Biden administration, antitrust regulation has taken a major turn, paving the way for a much more rigorous approach. Result: almost all members of GAFAM are subject to legal proceedings for abuse of dominant position. If Donald Trump is not a big fan of these technological giants, his economic policy, aimed at strengthening American global leadership, could be very beneficial to local flagships.
And they know it. “ Congratulations to our 45th and now 47th president for his extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory. No nation has greater opportunities », Jeff Bezos was quick to tweet after the result. The founder of Amazon had already made a big splash a few days ago, by preventing the Washington Posta media outlet he owns, to take a position in favor of Kamala Harris. A historic decision: the newspaper has supported the Democratic camp since 2008.
Big congratulations to our 45th and now 47th President on an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory. No nation has bigger opportunities. Wishing @realDonaldTrump all success in leading and uniting the America we all love.
— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) November 6, 2024
Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, also congratulated the Republican candidate. “ We look forward to working with you and your administration on issues important to our customers, our employees, our communities and our country “. Last year, the e-commerce giant was indicted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), American antitrust watchdog, for anticompetitive practices.
The boss of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, also seems to have changed his mind. Already praising Donald Trump following his assassination attempt in July, he took to Threads to hail his victory. “ There are great opportunities ahead of us as a country. I look forward to working with you and your administration “, he wrote. However, the real estate mogul has always been very critical of the company, believing that it deliberately censored him. He even threatened Zuckerberg to “ life prison “.
Several investigations target tech giants
That’s not all, far from it. Apple CEO Tim Cook said: looking forward to collaborating » with the Trump administration « to ensure that the United States continues to be at the forefront of ingenuity, innovation and creativity “. The apple brand currently finds itself in a delicate position. Accused of an unfair monopoly in the smartphone sector in the United States, it is also affected by the European Digital Markets Act, which forces it to open up its traditionally closed ecosystem.
Guest in a podcast in October, Donald Trump explained that Tim Cook had contacted him to complain about European regulations. “ I’m not going to let them take advantage of our businesses – that’s not going to happen, you know “, then launched the Republican.
Congratulations to President @realDonaldTrump on his decisive victory. We are in a golden age of American innovation and are committed to working with his administration to help bring the benefits to everyone. pic.twitter.com/IPX7AJ8VvI
— Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai) November 6, 2024
“ We’re living in a golden age of American innovation, and we’re committed to working with the Trump administration to make sure everyone can benefit. “, for his part declared Sundar Pichai, director of Alphabet and Google, applauding a “ decisive victory “. Yet the president has repeatedly vilified the company. His administration is even at the origin of the lawsuit relating to its search engine, which risks leading to the dismantling of its activities.
Satya Nadella and Sam Altman, who run Microsoft and OpenAI respectively, also congratulated Donald Trump. “ We look forward to engaging with you and your administration to advance innovation that creates new growth and opportunities for the United States and the world “, declared the CEO of the Redmond firm. The stakes are high. The two firms are establishing themselves as major players in the generative artificial intelligence (AI) sector, into which the Biden administration has initiated a vast antitrust investigation.
The chip industry on the alert
Chipmakers are also on the lookout. “ We congratulate President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Vance on their victory and look forward to working with their administration to advance America’s technological and manufacturing leadership around the world », Said Pat Gelsinger, boss of Intel.
The company is going through an incredibly turbulent time, posting its worst losses in its history during the third quarter. Above all, it is banking on the subsidies provided under the Chips Act to get back into battle shape. The law provides substantial financial aid for companies that build production plants on American soil.
We congratulate President-Elect Trump and Vice President-Elect Vance on their victory and look forward to working with their administration to advance America’s technology and manufacturing leadership in the world.
— Pat Gelsinger (@PGelsinger) November 6, 2024
Cristiano Amon, head of Qualcomm, did not fail to congratulate the president in turn, emphasizing his “ pleasure to work with the new administration and Congress to advance priorities that promote resilience, innovation and competition in America “.
Investors are jubilant
Unsurprisingly, the investment world is delighted with Donald Trump’s coming to power. Several renowned investors openly supported him during his campaign, like Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, the founders of the powerful venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. These firms intend to protect the startups they support, in a regulatory climate that has become hostile, according to them, under the leadership of the Biden administration.
The potential arrival of Elon Musk in government is also seen as a strong signal for the entire technology industry. The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX could play a decisive role in the deregulation of the sector.
