Big Tech's Power Shift: Decoding the Silicon Valley-Trump Connection

This: a bunch of hugely powerful tech CEOs traded their usual casual outfits for suits and ties to watch Donald Trump's re-inauguration. Sitting right there were big names like Mark Zuckerberg from Meta, Sundar Pichai from Google, and Jeff Bezos from Amazon. Also present were Elon Musk, who’s close to Trump and heads a government efficiency department, Apple’s Tim Cook, Sam Altman from OpenAI, and Shou Zi Chew from TikTok. You might be thinking, "Why the sudden change of heart? " Well, this shift in political allegiance could mean big changes for the whole country, and perhaps even the world. For instance, Meta's now more lenient on hate speech, TikTok’s ban was pretty short-lived, and tons of government money are being promised to build data centers for AI. This is just the start, folks! Justin Hendrix from Tech Policy Press and Jessica Washington from The Intercept have been chatting about this in their latest podcast. Hendrix pointed out that three of these CEOs—Zuckerberg, Bezos, and Musk—could become trillionaires in just a few years, with Musk potentially being the first by 2027. Washington added that it’s not just about money; it’s about these CEOs seeing themselves as world-shapers who are aligning with Trump to push their vision of the future. Curious to hear more? Check out the latest episode of The Intercept Briefing.