Google and Microsoft donated $1 million each for the inauguration ceremony of US President-elect Donald Trump, which will be held on January 20, 2025. This move is considered as an effort by technology giants to increase their influence in the political arena.
Karan Bhatia, Google’s Head of Global Government Relations and Public Policy, stated that the company will broadcast the swearing-in ceremony live on YouTube and offer a direct link on its homepage. He also stated that they provided financial support to the ceremony committee. This donation is notable for being more than three times the $285,000 contribution Google made to Trump’s first inauguration in 2017.
Microsoft similarly increased its contribution compared to previous years by donating $1 million. The company donated 500 thousand dollars each to Trump’s first inauguration in 2017 and Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021. It is known that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella met with Trump more than once and was involved in talks to take over TikTok’s US operations in 2020.
Google and Microsoft are not the first companies in the tech world to be Trump donors
In addition to Google and Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Apple CEO Tim Cook also donated $1 million each to Trump’s inauguration fund. This situation is interpreted as an effort by technology companies to strengthen their political relations and take a strategic position against possible regulatory pressures.
Google, in particular, faces monopoly lawsuits over its search engine services. In 2024, a decision was made that Google’s search engine services constituted a monopoly. In this context, the large donations made by companies to the swearing-in ceremony can be considered as an effort to establish positive relations with the new administration.
Additionally, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s efforts to improve relations with Trump draw attention. Meta continues his quest for balance on the political stage by donating $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund.
Political donations and lobbying activities of technology companies can cause political decisions to be shaped in favor of companies. It is known that technology giants, especially Meta and Google, spend hundreds of millions of dollars annually on lobbying activities in the USA.