U.S. President Donald Trump is set to host a private dinner on Thursday evening with more than two dozen of the world’s most influential technology and business leaders in the newly renovated White House Rose Garden. According to a White House official, attendees include Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The gathering follows a White House event on artificial intelligence earlier in the day, led by First Lady Melania Trump.
The high-profile dinner underscores Trump’s evolving relationship with Silicon Valley, which was once marked by clashes over antitrust scrutiny and content moderation during his earlier presidency. Since his 2024 election victory, however, many tech firms have recalibrated, aligning more closely with the administration’s agenda. Executives have reportedly sought to build ties with the White House while navigating Trump’s pushback against diversity initiatives and his strong interest in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.
The newly redesigned Rose Garden, completed in August, offers a symbolic backdrop for the evening. The grass lawn has been replaced with a stone patio and umbrella-covered tables inspired by Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. “The president looks forward to welcoming top business, political and tech leaders for this dinner and the many dinners to come on the new, beautiful Rose Garden patio,” White House spokesman Davis Ingle said in a statement.
Alongside Zuckerberg, Cook, Gates, and Altman, the guest list includes Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Oracle CEO Safra Catz, Blue Origin CEO David Limp, Micron Technology CEO Sanjay Mehrotra, and OpenAI President Greg Brockman.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar, Meta’s chief AI officer Alexandr Wang, and Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive are also expected. Notably absent is Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk, who previously served as a Trump adviser but split publicly with the president earlier this year.