Donald Trump promises to pursue Peter Thiel’s claim that Google has ‘treasonous’ ties to China
- Offering no evidence, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur said several times this week that the US tech giant was working with the Chinese government
- The president said Thiel, who is a prominent supporter and campaign donor, ‘knows this subject better than anyone’
US President Donald Trump has once again put Google in his crosshairs, saying on Tuesday that his administration would look into what he claimed were “seemingly treasonous” ties between the tech giant and China.
The statement, tweeted by Trump on Tuesday morning, came after Silicon Valley investor Peter Thiel said on Sunday that Alphabet’s Google unit was working with the Chinese government instead of the US military and called for the FBI and CIA to investigate the company.
Thiel, who is a Trump campaign donor and also a Facebook board member, made his remarks in a speech at the National Conservatism Conference in Washington.
“Billionaire Tech Investor Peter Thiel believes Google should be investigated for treason. He accuses Google of working with the Chinese Government,” Trump wrote on Twitter, adding, “The Trump Administration will take a look!”
In the tweet, Trump described Thiel, one of his top Silicon Valley supporters, as “a great and brilliant guy who knows this subject better than anyone”.