Elon Musk went all-in to elect Trump. What a second Trump presidency could mean for big tech

SAN FRANCISCO —  On election night, as Republican Donald Trump inched closer to reclaiming the U.S. presidency, some tech executives and venture capitalists rejoiced.

“The people of America gave @realDonaldTrump a crystal clear mandate for change tonight,” Elon Musk posted on his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

The eccentric billionaire, who shared a Photoshopped image of himself carrying a sink into the Oval Office, has been a vocal supporter of Trump, who defeated Vice President Kamala Harris to win the White House.

The 2024 U.S. presidential election has been a wild ride, highlighting a divide between venture capitalists and tech executives — some of whom spent millions of dollars backing Trump while others poured money into Harris’ campaign. Both sides argued the candidates they support would benefit the tech industry.

Box Chief Executive Aaron Levie, who backed Harris and made the case the Democrat is pro-business, congratulated Trump on his win late Tuesday night. “What’s great about America is that we’re on a rocket ship right now and can keep accelerating with the right policies and execution,” Levie posted on X.

Musk stands to benefit from a second Trump presidency. He runs companies such as Tesla and SpaceX that hold billions of dollars in government contracts, but has also clashed with regulators. Trump said he would make Musk the head of a new “government efficiency commission,” sparking concerns about potential conflicts of interest. Once critical of policies that benefit electric vehicles, Trump softened his tone after Musk endorsed him.

Trump‘s and Harris’ campaigns didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Here’s how a Trump presidency could reshape the tech industry:

Artificial intelligence

Trump plans to repeal President Biden’s 2023 AI executive order, which aims to ensure businesses develop technology responsibly because he thinks it hinders innovation.

“In its place, Republicans support AI Development rooted in Free Speech and Human Flourishing,” according to a document that outlines policies he supports.

There will probably be some form of AI regulation under Trump, analysts say, but exactly what that will look like is unclear.

“Knowing what you’re going to be dealing with really matters for the business community,” said Todd O’Boyle, senior director of technology policy with the Chamber of Progress, a tech industry advocacy group. “We are entering really uncharted waters.”

Under Trump, there could be “rejuvenated interest” for state AI regulation, he said.

In California, lawmakers proposed a slew of AI-related bills this year and O’Boyle expects that will continue. Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed Senate Bill 1047, a hotly contested bill that aimed to require developers of advanced AI models to adopt safety measures.

Trump could make a big push into AI innovation, analysts say. As the use of AI in the military rises, Trump’s campaign says he would “invest in cutting edge research and advanced technologies” in part to modernize the military, which would benefit tech firms such as Palantir and Anduril Industries.

Palmer Luckey, who founded Anduril Industries and supports Trump, urged his followers on X to “Pokemon Go to the polls.” As Trump moved closer to victory on election night, Luckey posted a photo of Pokémon character Ash Ketchum with a tear (apparently of joy) streaming down his face.

“When it comes to AI, what will rule is, if there’s money to be made, it’ll be supported,” said Olaf Groth, faculty member at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and chief executive of think tank Cambrian Futures.

Trump could also punish companies that cross him.

His campaign has said he would pass a digital bill of rights and legislation to “drastically limit the ability of big social media platforms to restrict free speech.” Trump, who operates his own his own social media platform, Truth Social, has been critical of Facebook’s parent company Meta Platforms and Google, accusing them of censoring his speech, allegations they deny.

Citing competition with China, Trump has proposed imposing tariffs so businesses prioritize American suppliers. In the past, tech titans such as Apple that rely heavily on China to manufacture products such as the iPhone and the Apple Watch have managed to get tariffs waived.

O’Boyle said that the tech industry is “tariffs skeptical.”

“Tariffs are a tax on consumers,” O’Boyle said. “It’s hard to see how tariffs are going to address the economic challenges in the country. Tariffs slow trade. They create friction to trade.”

Cryptocurrency

Some of Trump’s vocal supporters include investors and twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, who co-founded cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, and have accused the Biden administration of trying to destroy their industry.

A Trump presidency is a “huge win for crypto,” said Daniel Ives, a managing director at Wedbush Securities.

The Biden administration has proposed tax reporting requirements for cryptocurrency brokers and issued an executive order in 2022 to crack down on cryptocurrency scams, fraud and theft. The executive order also mentions exploring the creation of a digital U.S. dollar.

In his policy document, Trump’s campaign signaled he would be more friendly toward the cryptocurrency industry and roll back the Biden’s administrations actions. Republicans oppose the creation of a digital U.S. dollar.

“To the extent that the Biden administration was skeptical of fintech and crypto, it’s a reasonable bet that the Trump administration will reverse any fintech and crypto skeptical policies that the Biden administration stood up,” O’Boyle said.

Antitrust and TikTok

U.S. regulators have been trying to rein in the power of tech heavyweights such as Meta, Amazon and Google, which the U.S. government is considering breaking up after a federal judge declared that the search giant has an illegal monopoly on search.

For all his concerns about the power of tech companies, Trump signaled he’s wary about breaking up Google. In an October interview moderated by Bloomberg News, Trump said he would “do something” but stopped short of saying he would break up the search giant.

“It’s a very dangerous thing because we want to have great companies,” he said. “We don’t want China to have these companies. Right now, China is afraid of Google.”

Some tech industry observers expect that Trump will name a new Federal Trade Commission chair, pushing Lina Khan out of the role.

The previous Trump administration pushed for Chinese tech company ByteDance to sell TikTok due to the U.S. government’s security concerns with the popular video app’s ties to China. Trump, who has raised free speech concerns about banning TikTok, might be open to allowing the tech platform to stay in the U.S. so it can compete with Google and Meta, analysts say.

“The irony is, even though Trump started the TikTok ban narrative, he’s changed his tune significantly and would actually support TikTok within the U.S. with restrictions, and any talk of a ban would actually dissipate for TikTok,” Ives said.

In a video posted on social media in September, Trump said, “We’re not doing anything with TikTok.”