Musk and Huang Renxun were absent from the White House technology banquet, focusing on AI and power challenges.

On Thursday, local time, President Donald Trump held an event at the White House, inviting several leaders from the tech industry to attend. These tech leaders praised Trump for his efforts in promoting chip manufacturing and investments in artificial intelligence (AI). It is worth noting that Elon Musk and Jensen Huang did not attend the event that day. According to reports, CEOs of tech companies such as Tim Cook from Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) and Sam Altman from OpenAI expressed gratitude to Trump, with some revealing the scale of their company's planned investments in the United States. Altman said, "Thank you for your contributions as a president who supports business development and innovation. This is truly a refreshing change. I believe this will lay the groundwork for us to lead the world long-term, which would not have been possible without your leadership." Cook stated that Apple Inc. plans to invest $600 billion in the United States. Cook said, "I want to thank you for setting the tone that allows us to make significant investments in the U.S. and establish some key manufacturing facilities here. I think this reflects your leadership skills and emphasis on innovation." The dinner was originally planned to take place in the newly renovated Rose Garden but was moved indoors due to rain. Earlier that day, executives including Altman, Sundar Pichai from Alphabet (GOOG.US, GOOGL.US), and Arvind Krishna from IBM (IBM.US) attended a White House artificial intelligence education special working group meeting hosted by First Lady Melania Trump. Several companies, including Microsoft Corporation (MSFT.US), NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US), IBM, Amazon.com, Inc., Alphabet's Alphabet Inc. Class C, and OpenAI, announced commitments in artificial intelligence education during the event on Thursday. Trump said, "This table is full of the smartest people. This is definitely a highly intelligent group." Reports said Trump spoke at the start of the dinner about a key obstacle facing tech companies - obtaining enough power to supply large data centers needed for developing artificial intelligence. Trump's administration has been working to eliminate barriers to data center grid connectivity but faces many challenges at the state level. Trump said, "Through reading and studying related materials, I have indirectly gotten to know all of you and your businesses like the back of my hand. In fact, this provides great convenience for you in obtaining power capacity and power permits." Meta Platforms (META.US) CEO Mark Zuckerberg was asked about his views on freedom of speech on the internet in the UK during the dinner. Reports said Zuckerberg seemed surprised by the question. Trump told Zuckerberg, "This is the beginning of your political career." "No, not like that," replied Zuckerberg with a smile. Trump also discussed the ruling on the Alphabet Inc. Class C search monopoly case with Pichai. "You had a very happy day yesterday. Do you want to talk about that wonderful day you had yesterday?" Trump asked. "I'm glad it's finally over," Pichai responded. NVIDIA Corporation CEO Jensen Huang did not attend the event. Reports said Huang prefers to communicate with the White House in a one-on-one setting, allowing the President enough time to focus on important matters. Furthermore, Tesla, Inc. (TSLA.US) CEO Elon Musk, who had a public falling out with Trump earlier this year, did not attend either. According to reports, Musk posted on the X platform that he received an invitation but "regrettably cannot attend" and will send a representative.