President Donald Trump will present national medals to Elon Musk, Michael Dell, and several other technology executives at a White House summit on Thursday. The ceremony follows a pattern of substantial financial support from each recipient to Trump’s political campaigns and related causes.

Musk, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Nvidia chief Jensen Huang, and Advanced Micro Devices leader Lisa Su will receive the National Medal of Science. Michael Dell and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella will be honored with the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.

Financial ties between the honorees and the White House run deep. Musk provided more than $290 million to Trump’s 2024 presidential bid and later directed federal workforce reductions as a special government employee. Dell and his wife Susan pledged $6.25 billion to launch Trump Accounts, a savings initiative for American children. Huang contributed to a fund for a new White House ballroom, while Nvidia donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration. Brin attended the swearing-in and gave hundreds of thousands to the Republican National Committee in 2025. Advanced Micro Devices also directed funds to Trump’s campaigns.

Trump has recently traded stock in several of the companies led by these honorees. Disclosure records show he bought or sold shares in SpaceX, Tesla, Nvidia, Microsoft, AMD, and Alphabet as recently as July.

The summit takes place shortly after Trump hosted an artificial intelligence roundtable at the White House, which included many of the same executives. Following that meeting, Trump told reporters he signed a voluntary pact with industry leaders to pace AI development. White House assistant press secretary Liz Huston defended the awards in a written statement, noting the administration values the recipients' work. "The Trump Administration is grateful for the contributions of these incredible leaders in science and technology," Huston wrote. "These recipients are helping ensure America keeps leading the world in innovation."