Skip to main content

Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

Sorry Trump, Apple won’t be donating money or tech to this year’s GOP convention

ask trump backfires donald
Albert H. Teich / Shutterstock.com
Politicians can’t win everyone over, and Donald Trump is no exception. Despite his purported mutually adoring relationship with American corporations, a number of key corporate sponsors have decided not to sponsor the 2016 Republican convention in Cleveland, where the real estate mogul will be officially introduced as the party’s nominee for president. A Bloomberg report notes that Wells Fargo & Co., United Parcel Service Inc., Motorola Solutions Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Ford Motor Co., and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc., all of whom sponsored the 2012 convention, will not be partaking at the same level this year. And on the tech side, Apple is sitting this one out, as is HP, Inc.

The Silicon Valley behemoth’s decision breaks with that of its compatriots, as Facebook, Google, and Microsoft have all signaled the provision of “some support” to the GOP next month. But Apple will not be donating money or technology to the event, which signals the latest sign of a growing rift between Trump (and perhaps the GOP at large) and America’s tech industry. After all, it wasn’t too long ago that Facebook was accused of curating liberal stories in its Trending News section, and in the spring a number of civil rights groups set up a Trump protest at Google’s headquarters.

That said, a few companies that decided not to support the convention have explicitly cited Trump as their rationale, so maybe it’s just unfortunate timing.

Of course, Trump has always insisted that he has more than enough personal funds to pave his road to the White House, so perhaps the reluctance of many corporate sponsors to participate this year won’t be such a big blow to the reality television star. But it’s not just businesses who are suggesting that they may not make an appearance at the convention — indeed, some top Republicans have also indicated that they might be absent from the event.

But sponsors or no sponsors, Republican attendees or not attendees, this year’s convention is sure to be an event to remember.

Editors' Recommendations

Apple will pay $50M to settle the butterfly keyboard fiasco
MacBook Butterfly Keyboard

Years after Apple's butterfly keyboards started acting up, it seems that the company is ready to settle.

Apple's plan to pay $50 million to settle the class-action lawsuit has just received preliminary approval from a federal judge, pushing the case one step closer to its conclusion.

Read more
This EU law could force Apple to open up iMessage and the App Store
Someone holding an iPhone 14 with the display turned on.

The EU's Digital Markets Act (or DMA) has gone into force today. It could force Apple to open up the iPhone's iMessage and app-buying platforms to third-party apps and services. Companies that fall afoul of the act could be fined up to 20% of global turnover. Apple has previously criticized the DMA for being a "blunt instrument."

The DMA aims to allow smaller services to compete more equitably with larger ones. This means that companies with a certain number of users, labeled as gatekeepers, would have to make their platforms interoperable with smaller ones. Large platforms like Facebook or iMessage, for example, would be required to open up, while something like Signal could scrape by.

Read more
The Apple Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro may change our smartwatch future
The Apple Watch Ultra with Wayfinder watch face.

Rugged smartwatches are going to become a mainstream thing, and you can thank Samsung and Apple for it. I put Samsung’s name ahead of Apple’s because, technically, Samsung released a somewhat rugged smartwatch before Apple during this latest period of interest in the niche — but the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is a very different beast from the Apple Watch Ultra. However, together they will encourage other companies to add a tougher model to their own range of smartwatches. Get ready, because many more tough smartwatches are coming.
Two different directions
The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro was initially marketed as a rugged smartwatch for adventurers, with Samsung pushing the Route Back feature, the titanium and sapphire crystal construction, the bigger battery, and the raised bezel as reasons for outdoorsy types to buy the smartwatch. Despite this marketing push, the Watch 5 Pro doesn’t really feel, look, or perform like a rugged smartwatch. It's more like a posh version of the Galaxy Watch 5 with extended battery life.

If we think about the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro cynically, then the message of it being an outdoor smartwatch could be seen as a last-minute pivot by the marketing team to ensure it could compete with the impending arrival of the Apple Watch Ultra. Once the Watch Ultra did arrive, though, there was no hope of the Watch 5 Pro being a true alternative. Apple has gone all-out to make the Watch Ultra a Garmin competitor, leaving the relatively ordinary spec list of the Watch 5 Pro behind in the swirling desert dust.

Read more