When Satya Nadella met Trump, Musk also joined in to talk cybersecurity

Days ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration as the US President on January 20, he had a visitor at Mar-a-Lago, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

Nadella along with Microsoft President Brad Smith met with Trump at his Florida Palm Beach resort for lunch where Vice President-elect JD Vance and Elon Musk were also present.

A report by The Hill quoted a Microsoft spokesperson as confirming the news of the meeting that was held on Wednesday (January 15) and saying that Nadella and Smith discussed cybersecurity and technology policy with Trump, Vance and Musk.

The meeting is the latest example of the tech industry’s increasingly close relationship with Trump after his triumph in the 2024 US Presidential election.

‘Productive meeting’

As per a report by Semafor, Microsoft, in a written statement, said that two of its executives had a “productive meeting” and discussed cybersecurity, technology policy, as well as the $80 billion Microsoft plans to invest AI infrastructure worldwide this year, “creating new American jobs for American workers and advancing American competitiveness both in the US and abroad.”

Musk, whose xAI is also a player in that space, has been critical of Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI, which he is suing for transitioning from a nonprofit to a far-profit entity.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has recently become one of the latest tech companies to donate $1 million to Trump’s inauguration, joining the likes of Google, Meta and Amazon.

Several tech leaders have made a trip to Mar-a-Lago over the recent months since Trump’s win, to apparently improve relations with the incoming president, who has a history of having a tumultuous relationship with the industry.

Trump’s inauguration on Monday will also see several tech executives, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in attendance.

With inputs from agencies