Rose Garden Dinner Set for September 4
White House and Silicon Valley Forge Closer Ties
Strategic Collaboration to Strengthen U.S. Tech Leadership
President Donald Trump has invited big tech moguls to the first dinner to be held in the newly renovated Rose Garden, the outdoor garden of the White House, according to reports from multiple foreign media outlets including the Associated Press and Bloomberg on September 3 (local time).
According to the White House, more than 20 founders or chief executive officers (CEOs) are expected to attend the dinner hosted by President Trump in the Rose Garden on September 4. The guest list includes Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, Tim Cook of Apple, Bill Gates of Microsoft, Sam Altman of OpenAI, and Sundar Pichai of Alphabet (Google’s parent company), among others.
Davis Ingle from the White House press office stated, "The White House Rose Garden is the most prominent space in Washington, if not the world," adding, "The President will welcome key figures from the business, political, and technology sectors at this dinner and at many more to come."
Foreign media outlets noted that Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who parted ways with President Trump after conflicts over a large-scale tax cut plan, was not included on the invitation list. Musk previously served as an advisor to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) during Trump’s second administration, leading federal workforce efficiency policies, among other initiatives.
Recently, IT companies have been aligning themselves with the Trump administration’s policies to scale back diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, while also seeking to gain Trump’s support for emerging technologies. For example, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, who once had a strained relationship with President Trump, has tried to maintain a friendly relationship by donating $1 million to the Presidential Inaugural Committee. As a result of these efforts, these companies have reportedly been actively voicing their opinions to the Trump administration regarding digital regulations in various countries, starting with Europe.
President Trump, in his second term, is also focusing on policies to foster artificial intelligence (AI) technology, based on the strategic judgment that cooperation with big tech is essential for the United States to maintain technological supremacy. David Sacks, known as the "AI Czar," who oversees federal AI policy at the White House, announced an administrative plan in July that included easing related regulations and strengthening research and development (R&D). Additionally, the White House has expressed its intention to support major AI semiconductor companies such as Nvidia and AMD. Both companies recently stated that they plan to resume some AI chip sales to China after receiving approval guarantees from the U.S. government.
This Rose Garden dinner will also follow an AI event hosted by First Lady Melania Trump. On August 26, Melania Trump released an "AI Challenge" video highlighting the importance of AI education, personally taking on the role of ambassador. In the video, she stated, "The AI Challenge will be the first step for the next generation to gain a fundamental understanding of important new technologies."
Meanwhile, President Trump recently built a stone patio and replaced the parasols in the Rose Garden. The Associated Press described the renovations as "strikingly similar to the outdoor facilities at the Mar-a-Lago Club," which is President Trump’s private residence in Florida.
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