Mark Zuckerberg, Lauren Sanchez, Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai and Elon Musk during the inauguration in the rotunda of the US Capitol. — Bloomberg
WASHINGTON: A who’s who of the world’s wealthiest people surrounded President Donald Trump as he took the oath of office – gathering a combined net worth exceeding US$1.3 trillion for the occasion.
Seated prominently behind the Trump family for Monday’s swearing-in were the top three individuals on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg.
Also spotted inside the Capitol Rotunda for the inaugural ceremony were LVMH chief executive officer (CEO) and France’s richest man, Bernard Arnault, Alphabet Inc co-founder Sergey Brin and Las Vegas Sands Corp majority owner Miriam Adelson.
In a telling gesture, the tech billionaires were seated in front of Trump’s nominated Cabinet.
Defence Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth had to crane past Musk and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai to watch the proceedings.
The phalanx of deep-pocketed attendees highlighted a surge in support for Trump from Silicon Valley, Wall Street and other industries following his comeback victory in November’s election.
At stake for many of their businesses is the promise of relief from US regulations and the hope of a boost to their corporate bottom lines from Trump’s pledge to spur investment.
Others are hoping to avoid the worst of the fallout from tariffs that the president has vowed to use as an instrument of economic policy.
Embracing Trump marks a turnabout for some business leaders, who had recoiled from him four years ago following the Jan 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by hundreds of his supporters.
Yet Trump’s pariah status faded as odds increased toward his election on a business-friendly message that included an extension of tax cuts enacted in 2017 during his first term in office.
Out of all those present, Musk has put perhaps the most into Trump’s return to the White House.
The Tesla Inc CEO spent more than US$200mil of his personal fortune on the president’s campaign, quickly emerging as an influential adviser to Trump and taking a role as head of a government-efficiency initiative.
Musk also has a lot at stake with the new administration, with reducing government regulation and boosting access to space contracts key for his businesses.
After hearing Trump invoke plans during his inaugural address to send United States astronauts to Mars, the SpaceX CEO pumped his fists in the air.
Colonising Mars has been a longtime ambition of Musk.
Present in the crowd as well were hedge fund billionaire John Paulson, conservative media mogul Rupert Murdoch and Apple Inc CEO Tim Cook. — Bloomberg