US President Donald Trump welcomed a group of prominent technology executives for a dinner at the White House on Thursday, highlighting their role in shaping the future of innovation and economic growth. Among those present were Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, both of whom received public recognition from the President for their leadership in the tech industry.
Seated at a long table alongside First Lady Melania Trump, Bill Gates, and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Trump described the gathering as a meeting of exceptional minds. “The most brilliant people are gathered around this table. This is definitely a high IQ group and I’m very proud of them,” he remarked.
Pichai, speaking briefly during the event, emphasized the transformative potential of artificial intelligence, calling it one of the most significant technological shifts of our time. He praised the Trump administration’s recent ‘AI Action Plan’ as a strong foundation for maintaining American leadership in the field. In response, Trump commended Google’s commitment to the US economy, particularly after Pichai revealed plans for a USD 250 billion investment over the next two years.
Nadella, seated at one end of the table, was acknowledged by Trump for Microsoft’s stock performance, which rose from USD 28 to over USD 500 during his tenure. The President noted, “What a job you’ve done.” In his remarks, Nadella credited the administration for fostering global market access and trust in American-made technology, calling these factors critical to the sector’s success.
He also expressed appreciation for Melania Trump’s involvement in AI education initiatives, describing workforce skilling as a pivotal challenge tied to technological advancement. Bill Gates, reflecting on his philanthropic work, humorously attributed his ability to give back to the financial success driven by Nadella’s leadership at Microsoft.
Other attendees included Apple CEO Tim Cook, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Oracle’s Safra Catz, and Google co-founder Sergey Brin. Earlier in the day, members of the White House Task Force on Artificial Intelligence Education convened, with Pichai and IBM CEO Arvind Krishna participating in discussions focused on preparing the workforce for an AI-driven economy.
During a media exchange, Trump claimed credit for resolving multiple long-standing international conflicts, citing durations of 31, 34, and 37 years without naming the specific wars. He also mentioned an upcoming conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, describing their communication as productive.
The evening underscored the administration’s focus on strengthening ties with the technology sector, particularly in areas like AI development, domestic investment, and global competitiveness.
— news from The Economic Times
— News Original —
At White House dinner, Trump lauds Nadella, Pichai amid praises from executives
Synopsis n nTrump hosted a power-packed cohort of technology executives for dinner at the White House on Thursday, saying the “high IQ group” is leading a revolution in business. n nPTI n nSep 05, 2025, 06:18:10 PM IST n nSHARE THIS NEWS n nClose n nFont Size n nAbcSmall n nAbcNormal n nAbcLarge n nClose n nUS President Donald Trump has applauded Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Google chief Sundar Pichai for their work, while the two Indian-American technology executives thanked him for his leadership and praised him for his policies for the tech and AI sectors. n nTired of too many ads? Remove Ads n nTrump hosted a power-packed cohort of technology executives for dinner at the White House on Thursday, saying the “high IQ group” is leading a revolution in business. n n”The most brilliant people are gathered around this table. This is definitely a high IQ group and I ‘m very proud of them,” Trump said, sitting at the centre of a long table and flanked by First Lady Melania Trump, Microsoft co-founder and billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates on one side and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on the other. n nPichai and Apple CEO Tim Cook sat across the table from Trump, while Nadella was seated toward one end of the table. n n”It ‘s an honour to be here with this group of people. They ‘re leading a revolution in business and in genius and in every other work you can imagine,” Trump said Thursday. n nTired of too many ads? Remove Ads n nAfter making opening remarks, Trump invited the technology leaders sitting at the table to share their thoughts. n nPopular in TechMore ≫ n n1. n nZomato, Swiggy face Rs 180-200 crore GST hit, plan to pass on burden to delivery partners, customers n n2. n nFive Indian-American CEOs join Trump’s tech dinner, Elon Musk left out n n3. n nUrban Company’s Rs 500-crore pre-IPO secondary round: SBI MF, others buy Tiger, Accel shares n n4. n nGirish Mathrubootham to exit Freshworks, 15 years after founding the SaaS major n n5. n nAnalysts expect festive online sales to grow 30% after GST relief n n6. n nMicrosoft set to dodge EU fine with offer to unbundle teams n n7. n nLinde in advanced talks to set up Dholera plant n nIn his brief comments, Pichai said that the “AI moment is one of the most transformative moments any of us have ever seen or will see in our lifetimes. So making sure the US is at the forefront.” n nPichai said the Trump administration is investing a lot in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and termed the ‘AI Action Plan ‘, unveiled in July by the White House, as a “great start”. n n”We look forward to working together. And thanks for your leadership,” Pichai said to Trump. n n”Great job you ‘re doing. Incredible, really,” Trump told Pichai. n nTurning to Nadella, Trump said the Microsoft chief “has done a pretty good job” and added that he owned the Microsoft stock that has gone from USD 28 to now over USD 500. “What a job you ‘ve done,” Trump said to Nadella. n nNadella thanked Trump “for bringing us all together” and for the policies he has put in place for the United States to lead in the sector. n nNadella said that it is not just innovation that makes the industry unique, “but it ‘s the market access that you (Trump) have obviously championed for us all over the world and also the trust the world has in American technology. n nTired of too many ads? Remove Ads n n”I think that everything that you are doing in terms of setting in place the platform where the rest of the world can not only use our technology, but trust our technology more than any other alternative, is perhaps the most important issue, and you and your policies are really helping a lot,” Nadella said. n nThe Microsoft chief also expressed gratitude to the First Lady for “hosting what I think is perhaps the most defining issue, which is about skilling and economic opportunity that comes with AI.” n nTrump lauded Nadella, saying “A really amazing job you ‘ve done.” n nEarlier, First Lady Melania hosted a meeting of the White House Task Force on Artificial Intelligence Education alongside members of the Task Force and private sector leaders from American industry. Among the technology leaders participating in the task force meeting were Pichai and IBM Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Arvind Krishna. n nSpeaking after Nadella, Gates remarked that he is in the second phase of his career “giving away all the wonderful money that Satya ‘s good work has helped multiply a lot,” prompting a laugh from Trump. n nTrump asked Pichai about how much Google is investing in the US, to which the India-born CEO replied that the company will invest 250 billion dollars in the next two years in the country. n n”It ‘s great. We are proud of you. A lot of jobs,” Trump said to Pichai. n nThe President then asked Nadella about Microsoft ‘s investment plans in the country, to which the Hyderabad-born tech leader said that the company is investing about 75-80 billion dollars each year in the US. n n”Very good, thank you very much,” Trump said to Nadella. n nLater, Trump, responding to questions from the media at the event, repeated his claim that he “settled” seven wars but did not mention the conflicts by name. Then he went on to say that he settled three wars that had been going on for 31, 34 and 37 years. n nHe also said he would be speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the near future. “We are having a very good dialogue,” Trump said. n nAmong the leaders attending the White House dinner were Google founder Sergey Brin, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Oracle CEO Safra Catz.