Big Tech leaders including Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg had even better seats than Trump's cabinet picks.
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Tech titans, including the world's three richest people, attended President Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday as the 47th US president was given the keys to tech funding and regulation.
During the ceremony at the Capitol Rotunda, tech chiefs such as Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, and Apple's CEO Tim Cook took prime sears next to Trump's family and ahead of cabinet nominees.
"Big Tech billionaires have a front row seat at Trump’s inauguration," posted Senator Elisabeth Warren on Musk's social media platform X.
"They have even better seats than Trump’s own cabinet picks. That says it all".
The seating plans were changed on Monday as the event moved inside due to cold weather in Washington DC.
Here is a list of the tech leaders who were there.
Elon Musk
It comes as no surprise that the Tesla, SpaceX, and X boss attended the inauguration following his vocal support for Trump during the campaign and his donation of more than $250 billion (€242 billion).
Musk will also co-lead a new government council called the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Mark Zuckerberg
The Meta CEO and incoming US president have had a torrid past, with threats by Trump to imprison Zuckerberg "for life" if he interfered in the 2024 election.
But they appear to be turning a new page. Zuckerberg has changed the content moderation policies on his platforms by replacing third-party fact-checking with user-written "community notes" in the US.
Meta also donated $1 million (€970,000) to Trump’s inauguration fund and has reshuffled its lobbying staff.
Zuckerberg is also said to be co-hosting a reception on Monday to celebrate the inauguration.
Jeff Bezos
The Amazon founder also had a prime seat at the ceremony alongside Musk ahead of cabinet nominees.
Bezos, who owns the Washington Post, decided to withhold the newspaper’s endorsement in the presidential race, sparking an exodus of journalists.
Shou Zi Chew
TikTok’s CEO will be keen to get on Trump's good side as a US ban on the platform was scheduled to take effect a day before Trump's swearing-in.
The CEO was there at the Rotunda.
The Chinese firm chose to shut down its services in the US on Sunday, cutting off access to its apps such as TikTok in the US.
It comes after the US Supreme Court voted to uphold a law that banned TikTok over national security concerns and its links to China.
ByteDance said on Sunday it was in the process of reinstating user access to TikTok after Trump said he would try to pause the ban on his first day in office.
According to The New York Times, Zi Chew is expected to sit in a position of honour alongside former presidents and family members. However, it is unclear if the seating plans will remain as the ceremony has been moved indoors.
The Biden administration law, passed in April, required ByteDance to divest its US assets or face a ban due to security concerns.
Attorneys representing TikTok and its creators argue that the law violates the free-speech protections of millions of its US users.
Tim Cook
Apple’s CEO Tim Cook took a prime seat at the Rotunda.
In the past, Apple has faced criticism from Trump who has called on the company to do more to assist law enforcement in accessing encrypted devices.
However, Apple has said that creating a back door access to its operating system could cause safety concerns and provide easier access for hackers.
Sam Altman
Sam Altman was at the inauguration, though it is not clear where he was sitting.
He donated $1 million (around €969,500) to the inauguration fund, but this was from his own money and not from his company OpenAI.
He told Fox News in December he believed Trump would be "very good" at pushing for the US’s AI infrastructure.
Sundar Pichai
The Alphabet CEO was at the inauguration, standing next to Musk at the ceremony.
Google’s parent company previously donated $1 million (€969,500) to Trump’s inauguration fund.
Google has come under fire from some Republicans over its content moderation policies. Alphabet is also undergoing two antitrust lawsuits in the US.
In 2020, the Indian-born CEO said he was "disappointed" at Trump’s order to restrict immigration visas.
"Immigration has contributed immensely to America’s economic success, making it a global leader in tech, and also Google the company it is today. Disappointed by today’s proclamation - we’ll continue to stand with immigrants and work to expand opportunity for all," Pichai said on Twitter during Trump’s first term.
Dara Khosrowshahi
The Uber CEO and his company have each donated $1 million (€969,500) to the inaugural fund.
It was reported that he would be attending the ceremony.
Satya Nadella
It is unclear if Microsoft’s CEO was at the swearing-in but the company has donated $1 million (€969,500) to the inaugural fund.
On Wednesday, CEO Satya Nadella and Microsoft’s president Brad Smith met with Trump to discuss tech policy and the company’s pledge to invest $80 billion (€77 billion) into global AI infrastructure.
Not attending
The CEO of the world’s biggest chip maker Nvidia missed the inauguration.
Jensen Huang told reporters he would be visiting East Asia for the Lunar New Year as he usually does.
The inauguration comes as the outgoing Biden administration restricted US chip exports to many countries.
Nvidia said in a blog post that the rule "threatens to derail innovation and economic growth worldwide".
