Apple CEO Tim Cook is personally donating USD 1 million to President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration fund, Axios reports, citing sources. The Alabama native reportedly views the inauguration as a significant American tradition and is contributing in the spirit of unity.
The donation, made in Cook's personal capacity, comes ahead of Trump’s swearing-in on January 20. Sources also indicate that Apple as a company is not expected to make any contributions.
Cook is among several prominent figures contributing to President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration fund, other tech leaders, including OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, have also taken steps to build ties with Trump, despite past tensions during his first term. Bank of America is also expected to contribute, although the exact amount remains undisclosed.
Meta Platforms and Amazon have each reportedly donated USD 1 million to the inaugural fund.
Jeff Bezos and Donald Trump have had a rocky relationship over the years. Trump frequently criticised The Washington Post, owned by Bezos, accusing it of biased coverage during his first term. Trump also claimed the paper acted as a lobbyist for Amazon and accused the company of avoiding taxes, undercutting small retailers, and underpaying the U.S. Postal Service for deliveries.
The tensions extended to Amazon Web Services, which alleged Trump interfered to block a USD 10 billion Department of Defense cloud computing contract. Despite this fraught history, Bezos has taken steps to repair relations as Trump’s political fortunes have risen.
After an assassination attempt on Trump in July, Bezos posted on X, formerly Twitter, for the first time in nearly a year, praising Trump’s "grace and courage under literal fire" and expressing sympathy for the victims. Bezos also reportedly blocked The Washington Post from endorsing Kamala Harris, breaking long-standing tradition, and congratulated Trump on what he called "an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory" following the election.
Donald Trump hosted Tim Cook for dinner at his Mar-a-Lago resort on December 13, 2024 according to a source familiar with the matter, reported AP.
Ahead of his inauguration on January 20, Donald Trump revealed that he received a call from Tim Cook in October regarding concerns over financial penalties imposed by the European Union on Apple. According to an AP report, Apple lost its final appeal in a long-running dispute with the EU over 13 billion euros (USD 14.34 billion) in back taxes owed to Ireland.
Apple, a major contributor to the U.S. economy, is the largest taxpayer both in the U.S. and globally.
Trump appeared to acknowledge his awareness that more industry stakeholders were trying to establish a good relationship with him.
“EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE MY FRIEND!!!” he posted on December 19 on Truth Social.
As Inauguration Day draws closer, Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance are preparing for their swearing-in ceremony at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. The ceremony will take place on the west front of the Capitol, where Trump will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. He will become only the second U.S. president in history to be elected to nonconsecutive terms. The president-elect’s team is also preparing to host several world leaders at the Capitol in January.
