A bevy of chief executives are set to become part of Donald Trump's administration, and they include two tech luminaries: Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, and Travis Kalanick, Uber's head honcho.
Trump's Own CEO Club
Musk and Kalanick will join Indra Nooyi of Pepsi in the so-called Strategic and Policy Forum. This newly created group also counts General Motors's Mary Barra, Jamie Dimon from J.P. Morgan, Stephen Schwarzman of Blackstone, and Disney's Bob Iger, among other business leaders as members.
The number of CEOs could still expand as Trump's transition team has been announcing names in batches. Schwarzman, however, has been tapped as chair of the forum.
"America has the most innovative and vibrant companies in the world, and the pioneering CEOs joining this Forum today are at the top of their fields," Trump explained in a statement. "My administration is going to work together with the private sector to improve the business climate and make it attractive for firms to create new jobs across the United States from Silicon Valley to the heartland."
The group will purportedly meet with the Trump from time to time. It is not yet clear if the forum will have a role or any official capacity in actual policymaking, as it seems to primarily serve as a sounding board for Trump, particularly on issues covering the economy, job creation, and possibly the repatriation of overseas cash as well.
Trump Meets Silicon Valley As Well
Musk was also among those selected to meet with Trump last Dec. 14 at the Trump Tower, where the president-elect has been holding court since his presidential victory. He was one of the Silicon Valley leaders present, which includes Apple's CEO Tim Cook, Google's Larry Page, Microsoft's Satya Nadella and Amazon's Jeff Bezos, among others.
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's CEO, who has been previously accused of allowing fake news at Facebook purportedly to favor Trump, was not present. His company was represented by Sheryl Sandberg, the social media network's chief operating officer.
Trump's Critics
It is important to note that a number of the forum's members have been some of Trump's vocal critics during the election campaign. Musk is among this group, having been named as one of the tech leaders who attended a secret meeting to stop Trump's ascendancy.
Musk was even quoted by several media outlets when he said that Trump is not the right guy for the presidency. Kalanick had a more vocal stance toward Trump. In October of last year, he told a group of college students that he will move to China if Trump wins.
