In recent news, former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his fiancée Lauren Sanchez were among over 200 guests in attendance at a White House state dinner hosted by President Joe Biden in honor of the Prime Minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida. The event was attended by other notable business leaders such as Apple CEO Tim Cook, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, BlackRock chief Larry Fink, former President Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, and actor Robert De Niro. Japanese business figures like SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son and former Mitsubishi chairman Ken Kobayashi were also present.
Bezos and Sanchez went public with their relationship in 2019 after Bezos’ split from ex-wife MacKenzie Scott. The Washington Post described the event as “full of formality and lacking subtlety.” First Lady Jill Biden transformed the State Floor of the White House into a “vibrant spring garden” for the occasion, where guests enjoyed a three-course meal inspired by American and Japanese cuisine.
These state dinners are not new to business and tech leaders. Last year, a similar event was held for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which Tim Cook also attended alongside OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Google CEO Sundar Pichai. These gatherings provide an opportunity for leaders from different sectors to come together for important discussions and relationship-building.
