US President Donald Trump hosted some of the world’s top technology leaders for an exclusive dinner at the White House on Thursday night but excluded Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk from the list. This comes amid Trump-Musk clash and the latter’s exit from the White House and government as the DOGE chief.
The guest list features tech titans such as Bill Gates, Tim Cook, Mark Zuckerberg, and Sergey Brin. But what stands out is the strong presence of five Indian Americans, underscoring their growing dominance in global technology leadership.
Five Indian Americans at the table
1. Sundar Pichai – CEO, Google & Alphabet
The Chennai-born leader of Google is at the forefront of global AI development, balancing innovation with regulatory challenges.
2. Satya Nadella – CEO, Microsoft
Under Nadella, Microsoft has transformed into a powerhouse in cloud computing and artificial intelligence, cementing his place among the most influential CEOs in the world.
3. Arvind Krishna – Chairman & CEO, IBM
Krishna has driven IBM’s pivot towards AI and hybrid cloud, pushing for ethical AI adoption across industries.
4. Sanjay Mehrotra – CEO, Micron Technology
A semiconductor pioneer, Mehrotra’s leadership at Micron is critical to powering the chips that underpin AI and next-gen computing.
5. Vivek Ranadivé – Chairman, TIBCO Software
An entrepreneur and investor, Ranadivé is a champion of real-time analytics and digital transformation.
Musk absent, other tech giants present
Besides Bill Gates, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg, the others attending are Google co-founder Sergey Brin, OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, Oracle CEO Safra Catz, Blue Origin CEO David Limp, and Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang. Notably missing, however, is SpaceX and Tesla boss Elon Musk. Once close to Trump, Musk broke with the president earlier this year following a series of disagreements.
Melania’s AI task force
The gathering, initially scheduled for the Rose Garden but moved indoors due to rain, follows a meeting of the newly formed Artificial Intelligence Education Task Force, chaired by First Lady Melania Trump. The dinner came on the heels of the inaugural meeting of the Artificial Intelligence Education Task Force, chaired by First Lady Melania Trump. Addressing participants, she remarked, “The robots are here. Our future is no longer science fiction.”
The task force aims to develop AI education programmes to equip young Americans with future-ready skills. Several dinner attendees, including Pichai and Krishna, were present at the task force meeting earlier in the day.
White House officials said the dinner, dubbed the “Rose Garden Club” despite being moved indoors, is expected to become a regular feature where Trump engages directly with business and tech leaders.
Meanwhile, as Trump pushes ahead with a 50% tariff on India, the presence of Indian American CEOs highlights their rising influence in global technology, with their companies leading innovation in AI, cloud computing, and semiconductors.