"$884 billion in one photo": Viral lineup of Musk, Bezos, Zuckerberg, and Pichai at Trump’s inauguration screams wealth

On January 20, 2025, the day of Donald Trump's inauguration to begin serving his second term as the 47th President of the United States, a very impressive lineup of tech moguls appeared as the freezing temperatures plummeted to Arctic levels. The ceremony was moved indoors at the U.S. Capitol, but that did not stop the powerhouses from shining.

The VIPs included Elon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX), Jeff Bezos (Amazon), Mark Zuckerberg (Meta), and Sundar Pichai (Google).

Together, these billionaires represent a wealth mountain. Musk takes the lead with a jaw-dropping $433.9 billion, followed by Bezos at $239.4 billion, Zuckerberg with $211.8 billion, and Pichai quietly rolling in a less-publicized fortune.

Meanwhile, social media was absolutely living for the viral photos of this squad, collectively worth more than some countries. People couldn’t stop pointing out just how much money was packed into one snapshot. A user noted: “$884 billion in one photo 😭”

Another added: “How much money is in that photo?”

A user stated: “this picture screams wealth!”

A user humorously noted: “It’s like the wealth of 5 countries right there 🤣”

A comment read: “The amount of wealth in that room was insane 🔥💀”

“More money in one photo than i'll see in my life time”, another comment read.

A user quipped: “Nah I can feel my brokeness just by looking at this pic.”

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The tech billionaires' influence

In the past, many of the biggest names in tech weren’t exactly sending Trump holiday cards. During his first term, they had a lot to say—none of it positive—about his policies and rhetoric.

But, fast forward to 2024, and things took a 180. After Trump’s re-election, the tech giants realized that aligning with him could come with some major perks.

Musk went full throttle. Not only did he throw over $277 million into Trump’s campaign war chest, but he also used his X (formerly Twitter) platform to blast out a steady stream of pro-Trump messages.

Musk even landed the gig as co-leader of the Department of Government Efficiency, where he’ll be putting his mind to cutting public spending.

Bezos, on the other hand, had a more complicated relationship with Trump. As the owner of The Washington Post, which Trump has gone after more than once, Bezos was often in the crosshairs.

But Bezos saw that playing nice with the administration might benefit Amazon’s government contracts and take some heat off the ongoing antitrust investigations. Zuckerberg’s presence was especially noteworthy, considering the years of back-and-forth between him and Trump over Facebook’s content moderation policies.

But, in another plot twist, Zuck recently shifted gears, relaxing some of Facebook’s content restrictions to line up more closely with Trump’s “free speech” mantra.

And then there’s Pichai, whose relationship with Trump has been more on-again, off-again. They’ve met over tariffs, tech policies, and supply chain issues, but overall, Pichai’s approach has been more about the subtle art of political diplomacy.

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Inauguration highlights

The inauguration went down in the Capitol Rotunda, and it marked the first indoor ceremony since Reagan’s second term in 1985. That’s because Washington D.C. decided it was Arctic blast season, and no one was about to risk frostbite for a swearing-in.

Before appearing in the public eye, Trump and Melania took a traditional church service at St. John's Episcopal Church.

Along with the tech billionaires, other notable guests included Apple's CEO Tim Cook, media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.