Spanish PM calls for European rebellion against Silicon Valley's influence

Wednesday 22 January 2025 - 15:05

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has called for a European response to the increasing power of US-based tech billionaires, whom he refers to as a "tech caste" from Silicon Valley.

Sanchez's comments came the same day major tech figures, such as Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Sundar Pichai, attended the inauguration of US President Donald Trump. Speaking at the HispanIA 2040 event in Madrid, the Spanish PM criticized the role of Silicon Valley in shaping public opinion and monopolizing information. He accused these tech giants of attempting to use their dominance in social media to control public discourse and influence government actions across the Western world.

In light of this, Sanchez urged Europe to "rebel." He emphasized, “Democracy is not about money or tweets, it’s about one person, one vote. Europe will stand up to defend democracy against this threat.” Though Sanchez did not specify individuals, his remarks were widely interpreted as targeting Musk, who has close ties to Trump and has funded his election campaign.

Sanchez has previously criticized Musk, labeling him as the leader of a reactionary movement spreading hate. Musk also faced European backlash after making critical remarks about UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, while showing support for the far-right AfD party in Germany.

Despite this, some critics argue that Sanchez is using his criticism of Trump and Musk to position himself as a global leader against populism, aiming to deflect attention from domestic issues, including corruption scandals and alleged democratic backsliding within his government.