Tech executives are opening their wallets to defuse tensions with President-elect Donald Trump following his historic return to the White House.

OpenAI’s CEO confirmed this on Friday: Sam Altmanwill personally donate $1 million to President Trump’s inaugural fund, becoming the latest tech billionaire to seek to improve his rocky relationship with the new administration.

Meta, the parent company of popular social media apps Facebook and Instagram, also confirmed it donated $1 million to President Trump’s inaugural fund. Amazon did not respond to a request for comment, but reportedly plans to donate the same amount to President Trump’s inaugural fund.

meanwhile high tech companies The company has made donations at past presidential inaugurations, but the latest donation comes as President Trump and the Republican Party consider restructuring policies affecting social media, electric vehicles, artificial intelligence and more.

President Trump has criticized Big Tech in the past, accusing some of the world’s largest online platforms, including Meta and Google, of censoring conservative speech. Platforms have long denied the allegations, but the relationship between the tech industry and the Republican Party has deteriorated since social media companies suspended Trump’s accounts in the wake of the January 6, 2001, attack on the U.S. Capitol. It got more and more dangerous.

During Trump’s first presidency, executives at tech companies such as Google, Facebook and Apple clashed with the Trump administration for banning immigrants from certain Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States.

The Trump campaign, backed by Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, and other major tech companies did not respond to requests for comment.

Here are the tech executives and companies that donated to President Trump’s inauguration:

OpenAI

“President Trump will lead our nation into the AI ​​era,” Altman said in a statement, adding, “I enthusiastically support his efforts to ensure America stays ahead.”

Federal and state lawmakers, including California, are trying to put guardrails on the development of artificial intelligence. AI-powered tools make it easier for people to sift through large amounts of information, but the rapid development of this technology also raises concerns about national security, disinformation, and job loss.

But tech companies face intense competition from countries such as China, and there are concerns that regulations could slow their growth.

President Trump has indicated he plans to rescind President Biden’s 2023 Executive Order on AI, which was aimed at addressing some of the safety concerns surrounding AI, and analysts say President Trump We predict that there is a possibility that this will significantly promote the

Mr. Altman has also been a vocal supporter of Mr. Trump, spending at least $200 million to support the former president’s 2024 election campaign and discussing ways to cut government spending over concerns about the safety of AI. I have also sparred with Mr. Musk, who is looking for a solution. Musk, who was an early investor in OpenAI and also runs rival AI startup XAI, accused the company of putting profits and commercial interests ahead of the public interest. OpenAI, which is managed by a nonprofit board, is reportedly attempting to reorganize as a nonprofit organization. commercial interests Co., Ltd.

in New York Times Dealbook Summit This year, Altman didn’t seem too worried about Musk’s strong ties to Trump. “I strongly believe Elon will do the right thing, and I believe it is deeply un-American for Elon to use his political power to the detriment of his competitors and benefit his own business.” he said.

meta

This is Meta’s first contribution to a presidential inaugural fund, but the company has previously supported convention committees of both parties, Meta spokesman Andy Stone said in an email.

Mehta’s $1 million donation to Trump’s inaugural fund was made at Zuckerberg’s request. The Wall Street Journal reported.

Zuckerberg expressed concerns about Trump’s immigration policies during his time as president, and has strengthened his relationship with Trump. According to the newspaper, Trump had dinner with Trump at his private club, Mar-a-Lago, and presented him with Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses.

After the assassination attempt on President Trump in July, Zuckerberg said in an interview with Bloomberg that Trump’s reaction of pumping his fist in the air was “one of the worst things I’ve ever seen in my life.” ” he said.

The Trump campaign has proposed proposals that would impact online platforms, including legislation that would “drastically limit the ability of major social media platforms to restrict free speech.”

Jeff Bezos is reportedly scheduled to meet with the president-elect at his Mar-a-Lago club next week, and Amazon is also expected to donate $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund.

(Charles Krupa/Associated Press)

Amazon

Mr. Bezos is also trying to persuade Mr. Trump, and plans to meet with the president-elect next week at his Mar-a-Lago club. wall street journal The report cited a person familiar with the matter.

The e-commerce giant donated about $58,000 to Trump’s first presidential inauguration in 2017. (Biden was reportedly not accepting technology donations for his 2021 inauguration.)

President Trump has sparred with Amazon in the past, falsely accusing the Bezos-owned Washington Post of being a lobbyist for the tech giant. President Trump also accused Amazon of “post office fraud.”

Bezos’ companies could benefit from the Trump administration’s policies. Amazon Web Services and its space company Blue Origin, which competes with SpaceX, have federal contracts and are becoming friendlier to President Trump, the newspaper reported. washington post.

Speaking at the New York Times’ Dealbook Summit, Mr. Bezos expressed optimism about the new administration, noting that Mr. Trump “seems to be putting a lot of energy into cutting regulations.”

“If I can help him, I will help him, because there are too many regulations in this country,” Bezos said.