At a 2016 meeting with Google’s Larry Page, Apple’s Tim Cook, and other tech leaders, President-elect Donald J. Trump assured the group, “I’m here to help you succeed.”

However, Trump’s actions toward the tech sector in his first term proved inconsistent, often leaning toward confrontation.

His administration launched antitrust lawsuits against Meta and Google, while Apple and Amazon faced federal scrutiny. Trump accused Meta and Twitter of censoring conservative voices, sparking Republican-led hearings where tech executives faced intense questioning. He attempted to ban TikTok and criticized Amazon for avoiding taxes.

With Trump’s recent election victory on Tuesday, tech executives are now bracing for four more years of this unpredictability. Trump has pledged to appoint Elon Musk to a new role aimed at streamlining government operations and has promised to deregulate certain industries. He also hinted that the government’s pursuit to break up Google’s search monopoly might be overreaching, though the investigation began under his leadership. He has wavered on TikTok’s future, suggesting it could again face a U.S. ban. His plans for more tariffs could impact chipmakers and smartphone manufacturers.

The stakes are high. America’s tech giants — among the world’s most valuable companies — shape how people shop, communicate, and access information. The industry invests billions in innovations, including artificial intelligence, and is at the forefront of a global technology race, especially with China.

“He’s remarkably unpredictable when it comes to tech and often changes positions,” said Scott Babwah Brennen, head of the Center on Technology Policy at New York University.

A Trump campaign spokesman, Brian Hughes, stated that “some of the country’s most respected tech innovators and Silicon Valley leaders” support Trump, crediting his policies on economics, taxes, and regulations for fostering American innovation and aiming for technological leadership globally.

In an effort to build rapport, tech leaders started reaching out to Trump weeks prior, with private calls after a July assassination attempt. On Wednesday morning, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Amazon CEO Andy Jassy all congratulated Trump on his victory.

“Wishing @realDonaldTrump every success in uniting and leading our beloved America,” Bezos posted on X.

Nu Wexler, a former policy official at Twitter, Meta, and Google, observed, “Tech companies are now more savvy and pragmatic.” While tech executives once felt employee pressure to challenge Trump over his stance on Muslims and immigration, “employee voices hold less sway now,” added Wexler, founder of Four Corners Public Affairs in Washington.

In 2016, Trump’s initial tech policies were largely aligned with mainstream Republican views. His Federal Communications Commission rolled back net neutrality rules in 2017, which had prohibited internet providers like Comcast and Verizon from blocking online content.

Trump’s policies also took a firm stance against China. In May 2019, he banned American telecom firms from using foreign equipment, impacting Chinese companies like Huawei.

That year, Trump’s appointees at the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission launched antitrust probes into Google, Meta, Apple, and Amazon. Before he left office, the Justice Department sued Google, alleging it held a monopoly over online search. In August, a judge ruled against Google, with the government suggesting it may seek the company’s breakup.

In 2020, Trump threatened to ban TikTok unless ByteDance, its Chinese owner, sold it to an American firm, citing national security concerns. A deal nearly saw TikTok sold to investors including Oracle and Walmart, whose CEO Safra Catz and founder Larry Ellison were Trump supporters. The sale eventually fell through before Trump left office.

President Biden has since signed legislation requiring ByteDance to divest TikTok or face a U.S. ban. Yet, in an unexpected twist, Trump joined TikTok in June, stating he would protect it from a U.S. ban if reelected.

“For anyone wanting to save TikTok in America, vote for Trump,” he posted on Truth Social, his social media platform.

Trump shifted his stance again after the FTC filed an antitrust suit against Amazon in September last year, criticizing the action despite it originating during his tenure.

“Like Amazon or not, how can the FTC sue to break it up?” he asked on Truth Social.

Trump has gained surprising support in Silicon Valley, traditionally a liberal stronghold. His alliance with Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and owner of X and SpaceX, became especially visible in the closing weeks of his campaign. In his victory speech on Wednesday, Trump referred to Musk as a “supergenius.”

The presence of Truth Social, where Trump owns a 57 percent stake, adds complexity to social media regulation.

Yet, some former advisers say Trump’s grievances with tech have deepened since leaving office. He remains vocal about censorship, convinced that tech leaders favor Democrats, according to Barry Bennett, a Republican strategist and former Trump adviser. While Trump’s interest in tech has grown, partly due to Musk, he still believes these platforms were biased against him and “won’t let it go,” Bennett remarked.

“This is a big opportunity for tech companies if they’ve learned from his first term,” Bennett added, “that is, if they’ve learned.”