Elon Musk sidelined from Donald Trump's White House dinner with US tech executives

Published connected 05/09/2025 - 6:47 GMT+2 •Updated 9:19

US President Donald Trump hosted a group of tech executives astatine nan White House for meal connected Thursday, but 1 sanction was notably absent from nan impermanent list: Tesla, SpaceX and X leader Elon Musk.

Musk, erstwhile a adjacent state of Trump’s who was antecedently tasked pinch starring DOGE, an inaugural designed to trim backmost connected wasteful national spending, did not look to make nan exclusive trim of elder tech leaders.

The brace person not been connected bully opinionated since their highly nationalist feud earlier this twelvemonth complete disagreements connected Trump’s "Big Beautiful Bill", which Musk called “idiotic”, arguing that it will push national expenditure and indebtedness levels to caller heights.

Musk later intensified nan statement pinch Trump, taking to X to impeach him of deliberately concealing disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein’s files to screen up his ain engagement pinch nan convicted activity offender.

Instead of Musk, Sam Altman, who heads OpenAI, nan institution responsible for ChatGPT, and 1 of Musk’s biggest rivals successful nan quickly advancing artificial intelligence space, was present.

In different reflection of shifting loyalties successful Trump's world, nan meal included Jared Isaacman, who founded nan costs processing institution Shift4.

Isaacman was a Musk state chosen by Trump to lead NASA, only to person his information withdrawn because he was, successful Trump's words, “totally a Democrat.”

Trump grills executives connected home investments

Trump showcased investigation connected AI and boasted of investments that companies are making astir nan United States.

“This is taking our state to a caller level,” he said astatine nan centre of a agelong array surrounded by what he described arsenic “high IQ people.”

The meal was nan latest illustration of a delicate narration betwixt Trump and tech leaders, respective of whom attended his inauguration.

Trump has exulted successful nan attraction from immoderate of nan world's astir successful businesspeople, while nan companies are eager to stay connected nan bully broadside of nan mercurial president.

Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, who flanked Trump connected nan right, said his institution invested $600 cardinal (€514 billion) successful nan US each year, while Apple’s main executive Tim Cook said nan same. Alphabet CEO, of which Google is simply a subsidiary, Sundar Pichai said his institution was investing $250 cardinal (€214.2 billion).

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said nan Seattle-based tech elephantine is investing up to $80 cardinal (€68.5 billion) per year.

Some of nan different notable names who attended Thursday’s meal see IBM president and CEO Arvind Krishna and Code.org President Cameron Wilson, who were among those participating successful nan task force.

The White House confirmed that nan impermanent database for nan meal besides included Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Google laminitis Sergey Brin, OpenAI laminitis Greg Brockman, Oracle CEO Safra Catz, Blue Origin CEO David Limp, Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra, TIBCO Software president Vivek Ranadive, Palantir executive Shyam Sankar and Scale AI laminitis Alexandr Wang.