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Trump’s meeting with US tech leaders might be all about ‘asserting dominance’

Published Dec 13th, 2016 7:15AM EST
President Trump's Meeting With Apple
Image: Balce Ceneta/AP/REX/Shutterstock

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President-elect Donald Trump has an important meeting on his agenda for Wednesday afternoon: leaders of the most prominent tech firms in America have been summoned to meet the future president at his home in New York. Top execs from Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google, Intel, Microsoft, Oracle, Tesla, and others will join Trump and his team at 2:00 PM in Trump Tower. The agenda for the one-hour meeting isn’t public, and a source familiar with the matter says the entire purpose of this conversation might be Trump’s way of “asserting dominance” over the tech industry, which opposed his candidacy for the most part.

The “asserting dominance” quote belongs to a person close to the campaign, according to Forbes, but a Trump spokesperson did not comment on the matter.

After the elections, Trump had a similar meeting with the press. In an off the record meeting, members of the media ended up facing “a fucking firing squad,” according to people familiar with the talks, rather than discussing access to the White House under Trump’s presidency.

The technology sector, however, might not receive the same treatment.

It is believed that Trump will be part of the meeting on Wednesday, or he should stay for the majority of the time. Other Trump staffers attending the meeting include chief of staff Reince Priebus, son-in-law Jared Kushner, and long-time supporter Peter Thiel.

The list of tech leaders who’re coming to New York includes Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Alphabet CEO Larry Page, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Others expected to also attend the meeting are Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins, IBM CEO Ginni Rometty, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich, Oracle CEO Safra Catz, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, according to a report from Recode.

Topics on Trump’s agenda might include the creation of jobs in the US in the technology sector, as well as using tech to improve government.

Forbes notes that it’s unclear whether tech leaders will be able to discuss important subjects such as net neutrality, data encryption, and immigration.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.