Not just Elon Musk: How Donald Trump turned on the tech bros who supported him
Elon Musk
learned the hard way that
Donald Trump
is beyond control—or even the illusion of it. In Captain America: Brave New World, Harrison Ford plays a President who becomes the Red Hulk—transforming into something so powerful, so uncontrollable, that not even his own office can contain him.
In 2025, Silicon Valley's elite are learning they backed their own version of the Red Hulk.
Elon Musk learned it the hard way. A SpaceX rocket, after all, can be stabilised. It might blow up mid-flight, but it obeys the rules of physics. Donald Trump, by contrast, is pure political radiation—volatile, vengeful, and far more combustible. One moment, Musk was onstage at CPAC with a chainsaw.
Weeks later, he was disillusioned, publicly exiting Trump's orbit.
Guests including Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai and Elon Musk, ahead of the inauguration
Musk thought he could 'optimise' Washington like one of his chaotic startups. Trump let him try. He even handed him a bespoke cabinet role—chief of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). But politics doesn't run on engineering. It runs on power. And Trump, like Ross in Brave New World, doesn't just wield power. He becomes it.
Musk isn't the only one who thought he could contain Trump. Bezos tried détente. Cook tried diplomacy.
Zuckerberg tried appeasement. All of them believed they were in the room where it happened. But by mid-2025, it was painfully clear: Trump isn't an operator. He's the transformation. And no one, not even the tech bros who helped bring him back, is immune.
I. Elon Musk: From Chainsaw Hero to Sidelined Billionaire
WATCH: Elon Musk waves chainsaw on stage at CPAC
In February 2025, Musk stormed CPAC wielding a red chainsaw gifted by Argentina's libertarian president, Javier Milei. He theatrically sliced through government waste onstage and declared: 'It's wild how easy it is to save billions in an hour.'
Trump had made him the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a bespoke post for cutting federal spending. Musk promised $1 trillion in cuts and pledged $100 million to Trump's political machine. But the rocket man soon realised the swamp bites back.
By May, the alliance had frayed. Musk criticised Trump's massive tax-and-spend bill, protested a lucrative AI deal granted to OpenAI in Abu Dhabi, and found himself learning from The New York Times—not the Pentagon—that he was about to receive a classified China briefing.
Trump wasn't amused.
Musk's public exit from DOGE came days later. He announced his departure on X before informing Trump. The billionaire lamented 'toxic bureaucracy,' wasted effort, and reputational damage. He returned to SpaceX, posting launch videos and wearing an 'Occupy Mars' shirt.
The message: even the richest man on Earth can't steer Trump for long.
II.
Jeff Bezos
: From Truce to Tariff Threats
Bezos tried subtlety. The Washington Post dialled back its progressive tone.
Amazon donated $1 million to Trump's inauguration. The founder even met Trump one-on-one before the swearing-in. But April 2025 exposed the fault lines. Reports surfaced that Amazon might show tariff costs directly to consumers. Trump called Bezos to complain. The White House branded the idea 'a hostile and political act.' Amazon backtracked.
Trump publicly praised Bezos—for now. Yet Amazon remains in the crosshairs of the FTC's antitrust crusade.
Trump continues to blast Amazon's dominance, labour practices, and media arm. The détente was temporary. The regulatory threat is not. Bezos learned the Musk lesson early: accommodation buys time, not loyalty.
III.
Tim Cook
: Between a Tariff and a Hard Place
Apple's Tim Cook has long walked the diplomatic tightrope between globalist pragmatism and America First bluster. But in May 2025, even his balancing act faltered. Trump vowed to impose a 25% tariff on all imported iPhones, just days after a private meeting with Cook.
Apple's stock fell. Cook remained silent. Behind closed doors, Trump bragged: 'I told [Cook] long ago that I expect their iPhones to be built in the United States.
'
In reality, Apple's pivot to Indian manufacturing is already deep underway. Shifting production to the US isn't financially viable—and Trump knows it.
Meanwhile, the DOJ's antitrust suit against Apple's App Store, launched under Biden, remains alive under Trump.
His DOJ enforcers have refused to back down. Cook's fate shows the limits of soft power: you can't MAGA your way out of tariffs or trials.
IV. Mark Zuckerberg: Antitrust and Appeasement
Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg
Zuckerberg tried a full pivot. He:
Called Trump's 2024 shooting response 'badass.'
Axed Meta's US fact-checking and DEI programs in January.
Donated $1 million to Trump's inauguration.
Met the president at Mar-a-Lago.
None of it worked.
In April 2025, the Trump-led FTC brought an antitrust case that could dismantle Instagram and WhatsApp. Zuckerberg took the stand. Trump said nothing.
Inside Meta, dissent is growing. Engineers are unhappy. Investors are uneasy.
And the courts aren't friendly.
Zuck's wake-up call: pandering doesn't protect against prosecution.
V. Why the Tech Bros Keep Failing
1. Trump Is Loyal Only to Himself
Alliances are transactional. When your usefulness ends—or you challenge the narrative—you're expendable. Musk criticised the budget. Bezos flirted with tariff transparency. Cook got too cozy with India. Zuckerberg tried to please everyone and pleased no one.
2. Policy Alignment ≠ Policy Immunity
Backing Trump doesn't shield you from antitrust, tariffs, or regulatory pain.
DOGE didn't protect Musk. Inaugural donations didn't protect Bezos or Zuckerberg. Trump's agenda is pro-Trump, not pro-tech.
3. Internal Revolt Is Real
At Meta, at Amazon, even within Tesla—employee backlash is mounting. The political U-turns have alienated workforces, confused investors, and undermined credibility. These CEOs are caught between nationalist politics and global business.
VI. The Trump Tech Trap
The break-up is real.
Silicon Valley can no longer pretend Trump is a means to libertarian ends. He's not a partner. He's a movement. Unpredictable. Personal. Unmanageable. Musk thought he could code the bureaucracy. Bezos thought he could edit the narrative. Cook thought diplomacy could tame tariffs. Zuckerberg thought appeasement would spare him the courts.
But Trump doesn't follow scripts. He rewrites them mid-sentence. The Tech Bros thought they could ride the tiger. Instead, they're realising—the tiger rides them. Or to quote an actually far more watchable movie than Captain America: Brave New World, when Alfred explains to Bruce Wayne the psychology of men like the Joker: "...some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with.
"
Much like the Joker, Donald Trump is one of those men.
The Dark Knight (2008) - Some Men Just Want to Watch the World Burn Scene | Movieclips
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