Leaders of top tech companies including Facebook and Microsoft challenge order as Y Combinator boss says it’s time for sector to speak out

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Leaders from some of Silicon Valley’s most prominent companies, including Google, Apple, Microsoft and Facebook, condemned Donald Trump’s executive order blocking travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries.



Trump White House defends travel ban as John McCain warns of benefits to Isis Read more

“It is time for tech companies to start speaking up about some of the actions taken by President Trump’s administration,” wrote Sam Altman, president of the influential startup incubator Y Combinator, in a blogpost.

“I am obviously in favor of safety and rules, but broad-strokes actions targeted at a specific religious group is the wrong solution, and a first step toward a further reduction in rights.”

The precedent of invalidating already-issued visas and green cards – which took place at airports across the US after Trump issued his executive order – should be “extremely troubling for immigrants of any country”, Altman wrote.

“This is not just a Muslim ban. This is a breach of America’s contract with all the immigrants in the nation.”

Aaron Levie, CEO of the enterprise cloud company Box, went further. “On every level – moral, humanitarian, economic, logical, etc – this ban is wrong and completely antithetical to the principles of America,” he wrote on Twitter.

The Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings, used similarly strong language. “These actions will make America less safe (through hatred and loss of allies) rather than more safe,” he wrote on his Facebook page.

Comments from Apple, Google, Facebook and Amazon were more muted, but echoed the sentiment.

“I’ve heard from many of you who are deeply concerned about the executive order issued yesterday restricting immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries. I share your concerns. It is not a policy we support,” said Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, in an email to employees, obtained by the Guardian.

Google issued a statement that said: “We’re concerned about the impact of this order and any proposals that could impose restrictions on Googlers and their families, or that create barriers to bringing great talent to the US.”

Google’s co-founder Sergey Brin took concrete action by showing up at San Francisco international airport, where thousands were protesting against the executive order.

Ryan Mac (@RMac18) Google cofounder Sergey Brin at SFO protest: "I'm here because I'm a refugee." (Photo from Matt Kang/Forbes) pic.twitter.com/GwhsSwDPLT

“As an immigrant and as a CEO, I’ve both experienced and seen the positive impact that immigration has on our company, for the country, and for the world,” said Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, in a LinkedIn post. “We will continue to advocate on this important topic.”

Iranians stranded by US ban tell of jobs at risk and families in disarray Read more

The Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, said he was “concerned about the impact” of recent executive orders signed by President Trump.



“We need to keep this country safe, but we should do that by focusing on people who actually pose a threat. Expanding the focus of law enforcement beyond people who are real threats would make all Americans less safe by diverting resources, while millions of undocumented folks who don’t pose a threat will live in fear of deportation.”

The executive boards of some of the world’s fastest-growing companies show the contribution immigrants have made. According to a study by the National Foundation for American Policy, immigrants founded more than half (51%) of the current crop of US-based startups valued at more than $1bn.