Tim Cook held a meeting on Friday with Donald J. Trump at Mar-a-Lago, marking the first time that Apple’s chief executive has met with the president-elect since voters elected him to a second term last month.
Mr. Cook and Mr. Trump later dined on the patio at Mar-a-Lago, according to two people with knowledge of the meeting. The two men had a warm relationship during Mr. Trump’s first term — much warmer than Mr. Trump’s with other tech executives, like Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg or Google’s Sundar Pichai, both of whom recently had their own meals with Mr. Trump.
An Apple spokesman declined to comment. A spokesman for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The meeting offers a chance for Mr. Cook to seek Mr. Trump’s support on several issues that could challenge Apple’s business in the coming years, including pressure on the App Store from European regulators and the potential that new tariffs could put the company’s iPhone business at risk.
Mr. Trump has been receptive to those appeals in the past. During a podcast interview in October, Mr. Trump said he listened sympathetically as Mr. Cook complained to him on a call last month about European regulators who have fined Apple $2 billion for using the App Store to thwart competition.
“I’m not going to let them take advantage of our companies,” Mr. Trump recalled telling Mr. Cook. “That won’t be happening.”
Mr. Cook has become something of a model for corporate executives looking to stay on good terms with Mr. Trump. During Mr. Trump’s first term, the president heaped praise on Mr. Cook, saying that he liked that Mr. Cook called him directly to discuss business and economic issues. The approach helped Mr. Cook build a personal relationship with Mr. Trump and helped Apple avoid tariffs on many of its products, even as the Trump administration cracked down on other companies manufacturing in China.
In contrast, other tech giants have spent the last month working to repair damage in their relationships with Mr. Trump. In addition to Mr. Zuckerberg and Mr. Pichai, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is scheduled to meet with Mr. Trump next week. Meta and Amazon also said that they would donate $1 million to Mr. Trump’s inaugural fund.
In 2017, Mr. Cook started to build a relationship with the Trump administration by getting to know Mr. Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, and her husband, Jared Kushner. He would often call them to talk about policy matters and the potential ramifications of issues like tariffs on Apple.
Since neither Ms. Trump nor Mr. Kushner are expected to be involved in the upcoming administration, Mr. Cook may have to forge new allies in this next White House, especially on issues critical to Apple’s business, like manufacturing and trade.
Mr. Cook was among the many chief executives in technology who sought to flatter Mr. Trump after his election. He posted congratulations on X and said, “We look forward to engaging with you and your administration to help make sure the United States continues to lead with and be fueled by ingenuity, innovation, and creativity.”
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