WASHINGTON, D.C. — Following his 2024 election victory, President Donald Trump held meetings with major technology executives, including Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos. These discussions addressed business relationships, political alignment, and government contracts.

President Trump played an audio recording of a national anthem performed by detained January 6 defendants during a meeting with Mark Zuckerberg after Thanksgiving 2024. Prior to that meeting, Zuckerberg sent a photograph of a letter from one of his children to President Trump via text message. The letter contained language echoing Trump's campaign phrase about a golden age of America, which he had used at rallies before the 2024 election. Zuckerberg was one of several tech leaders to meet with President Trump; Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Apple CEO Tim Cook also met with him.

Jeff Bezos dined with President Trump at the Mar-a-Lago club in December 2024. During this dinner, Bezos criticized a media publication he owned, characterizing it as a poor financial investment. Bezos sent a text message to President Trump with a photograph of himself and Lauren Sánchez. President Trump referenced his past interactions with both executives. He told guests, "Think of where these guys were in 2016. They hated me. They were doing everything they could to knock me down. And look at them now."

President Trump told Bezos during a meeting, "This Washington Post is really unfair. You have got to take better care." Bezos responded, "The people there are terrible. They do not listen. My other companies, they listen." Bezos suggested to President Trump that the administration direct Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg to advise officials overseeing government space contracts to seek multiple contractors. Bezos argued that allowing a single company to dominate U.S. space infrastructure presents a national security risk. President Trump indicated he would consider Bezos's request regarding these contracts, but the request was not implemented. White House spokesperson Kush Desai stated, "President Trump is committed to working with every American business and business leader to cement America's innovative dominance, re-shore critical manufacturing, and accelerate economic growth." After reconciling with President Trump, Elon Musk resumed financial contributions to Republican candidates and expanded operations for SpaceX's Starship program.