Trump blasts EU for targeting Apple, Google, Meta

President Donald Trump blasted European Union regulators for targeting Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc.'s Google and Meta Platforms Inc., describing their cases against American companies as "a form of taxation."

The EU has established a reputation globally for its aggressive regulation of major technology companies, often sparring with major social media platforms, such as Facebook and X, over content moderation, and the likes of Apple and Google over antitrust concerns. 

"These are American companies whether you like it or not," Trump said in comments at the World Economic Forum in Davos. "They shouldn't be doing that. That's, as far as I'm concerned, a form of taxation. We have some very big complaints with the EU."

Trump specifically referenced a court case that Apple lost last year over a €13 billion ($14.4 billion) Irish tax bill. The EU's Court of Justice in Luxembourg backed a landmark 2016 decision that Ireland broke state-aid law by giving Apple an unfair advantage, requiring Ireland to claw back the money that had been sitting in an escrow account pending the final ruling.

Trump's comments mark the beginning of a long-anticipated clash between Trump and the EU over the bloc's big tech crackdown. Apple, Google, Meta and the X platform owned by Trump confidant Elon Musk may all be facing billions in fines — or even mandatory divestment orders — from dozens of separate ongoing EU investigations.

Trump's relationships with U.S. tech have been complex. He has publicly feuded with Meta Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg and Google, but he's had a closer relationship with Apple CEO Tim Cook. Musk is now a fixture of his inner circle and other tech executives have improved relations with him.

Musk, Amazon.com Inc.'s Jeff Bezos and Zuckerberg were all seated prominently behind the Trump family for his swearing-in on Monday. Also spotted in the crowd were Alphabet co-founder Sergey Brin and Cook.  

In 2024, Google faced its fourth abuse of dominance case in the EU, Apple was hit with a €1.8 billion penalty for blocking music streaming apps from informing users of cheaper deals and Meta was slapped with a €798 million fine for tying its Facebook Marketplace service to the social network.

All three companies are also being subjected to ongoing investigations under the EU's Digital Markets Act — which has the power to levy fines of as high as 10% of global annual revenue for violations. The rules set out dos and don'ts for the world's most powerful tech platforms - all of them American.