Big Tech Giants Seated in 'Sangseok' at Inauguration... Attending Church Services to Gain Trump's Favor

Big tech (large information technology companies) moguls all gathered at the inauguration of Donald Trump, the 47th President of the United States. The heads of big tech, who had a difficult relationship with the White House during Trump’s first administration, competed to donate funds even before the inauguration. On the day, they made an early appearance starting from the church service before President Trump’s official swearing-in, trying to make an impression. They sat side by side directly behind President Trump’s family at the inauguration, which analysts interpret as showing the changed status of Silicon Valley in Trump’s second term.

원본보기 아이콘

On the 20th (local time), at the Rotunda Hall in the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C., where President Trump’s inauguration took place, Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon; Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta; Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google; and Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, attended.

These big tech billionaires sat side by side in the second row, directly behind the seats of President Trump’s family. Founder Bezos attended with his fianc?e Lauren Sanchez, and CEO Zuckerberg attended with his wife Chan. Before the inauguration officially began, Bezos and Sanchez were even caught on camera chatting with Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law. CEO Zhang Yiming of TikTok, the Chinese video platform for which Trump suggested a temporary ban on service in the U.S., also attended but did not sit alongside the other big tech leaders.

Compared to governors such as Ron DeSantis, who was called 'Little Trump' and also participated in the Republican primary, and spouses of federal lawmakers who were not allowed to enter the Rotunda Hall for the inauguration, there is an assessment that the changed hierarchy and status of big tech in Trump’s second term can be glimpsed.

Big tech has been desperately trying to improve relations with the new administration since President Trump won the election last November. They competed to participate in the inauguration donation parade and did not hesitate to take any measures to win President Trump’s favor. CEO Zuckerberg announced on the 7th that Facebook’s 'fact-check' feature, which Trump had regarded as a 'thorn in his side,' would be abolished. This feature limited the exposure of posts judged to be false, intended to filter out fake news, but it had been criticized for excessively suppressing conservative opinions. On the 5th, Amazon announced it would produce a documentary film about the life of Melania Trump, the wife of President Trump.

As Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, rapidly rose as Trump’s 'first buddy,' wielding strong influence, other big tech companies seem to be trying hard to win President Trump’s favor amid concerns about reverse discrimination and expectations for regulatory easing.

These big tech leaders also participated in the church service, President Trump’s first schedule of the day. CEO Zuckerberg, founder Bezos, and CEO Cook were seen sitting in the church through cameras. The big tech moguls also attended the luncheon held after the inauguration.

Lawmakers expressed dissatisfaction as the big tech leaders sat in seats of honor even ahead of federal lawmakers and officials of the second-term administration.

Senator Elizabeth Warren (Democrat, Massachusetts) criticized, "Big tech billionaires sat in the front row at Trump’s inauguration," adding, "They took better seats than Trump administration officials. That says it all." A Republican lawmaker privately told the U.S. political media outlet The Hill, "I was annoyed by the seating arrangement."

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.