In the heart of Silicon Valley, a storm is brewing—though you wouldn’t know it from the public statements of its most powerful tech leaders. As the federal government, under President Donald Trump, pushes deeper into the inner workings of America’s largest technology companies, executives from Intel, Nvidia, AMD, Apple, Meta, and Alphabet have remained conspicuously silent. Their reticence comes at a time when the stakes have never been higher, with the government leveraging its authority to extract equity, impose new taxes, and even threaten prison for CEOs—all while a fresh wave of cyber extortion campaigns sweeps through the corporate world.
Just last month, a new extortion campaign emerged, targeting top executives at multiple companies with emails claiming that sensitive data had been stolen from their Oracle E-Business Suite systems. According to BleepingComputer, the campaign began in late September 2025 and is being actively investigated by security powerhouses Mandiant and Google’s Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG). Genevieve Stark, Head of Cybercrime and Information Operations Intelligence Analysis at GTIG, told reporters that the investigations are still in their early stages, and so far, the claims made by the perpetrators remain unsubstantiated.
Charles Carmakal, Chief Technology Officer at Mandiant – Google Cloud, offered more insight, explaining that the extortion emails are being sent from hundreds of compromised accounts, including at least one previously tied to FIN11—a notorious, financially motivated group with a history of ransomware and extortion. The emails themselves contain contact addresses that are listed on the Clop ransomware gang’s data leak site, hinting at a possible connection to Clop’s operations. Yet, Carmakal cautioned that, "while the tactics resemble Clop’s previous campaigns, there is insufficient evidence to determine if data has actually been stolen."
The story took another turn after BleepingComputer published its findings. Alleged representatives of Clop contacted the outlet, claiming responsibility for the extortion campaign and asserting that they had exploited a bug in Oracle’s product. However, when pressed for details, the group was tight-lipped. "We not prepared to discuss details at this time," Clop told BleepingComputer. "Soon all will become obvious that Oracle bugged up their core product and once again, the task is on clop to save the day. We do not damage to systems and only expect payment for services we provide to protect hundreds of biggest companies in world." The U.S. State Department, meanwhile, is offering a $10 million reward for information linking Clop’s ransomware activities to a foreign government, a sign of just how seriously officials are taking the threat.
While cybercriminals circle the periphery, the federal government has been making moves of its own inside the boardrooms of Silicon Valley’s biggest players. On August 22, 2025, Intel announced a historic $11.1 billion investment deal with the U.S. government, granting the government a 9.9% stake in the company. The government, according to Intel’s SEC filing, agreed to be a "passive" owner, promising to vote with the company’s board except in "limited exceptions." But those exceptions, as it turns out, are anything but limited. If President Trump asserts that Intel’s decisions affect "the US Government’s interests," then Uncle Sam transforms from a passive shareholder to an active one—one that now owns the largest single block of shares.
Mark Lemley, a professor at Stanford Law School who directs its Law, Science and Technology program, pulled no punches: "Trump’s idea of ‘US Government’s interests’ is anything he wants it to be." The president himself seemed to confirm this interpretation, writing on Truth Social, "The United States of America now fully owns and controls 10% of INTEL." The rest of Intel’s regulatory filing reads, as one columnist put it, "like a hostage memo written by securities lawyers," warning that "the US government’s interests in the company may not be the same as those of other stockholders." The deal, it turns out, could scare off foreign buyers—who account for a whopping 76% of Intel’s revenues—and upend the company’s relationships with partners around the globe.
Within days of the Trump-Intel announcement, the fallout was already visible. Intel quietly discontinued a program that trained new lawyers at North Carolina Central University, a historically Black college. The timing raised eyebrows, especially given the administration’s repeated pressure on companies to roll back diversity initiatives in exchange for regulatory favors. Neither Intel nor the university commented, but industry watchers noted the move as a potential signal of the government’s growing influence over corporate culture and policy.
Intel wasn’t alone in feeling the heat. In April 2025, the Trump administration blocked Nvidia and AMD from selling their advanced chips to China, citing national security concerns. The move cost Nvidia $15 billion in lost sales and AMD $800 million. As spring turned to summer, the administration leveraged these losses, ultimately extracting a deal: Nvidia and AMD agreed to pay the U.S. government 15% of their Chinese chip sales, a move that some legal experts described as a classic Trump "shakedown." Lemley, who has represented many of the valley’s largest companies, remarked, "These are very Trump-like shakedowns."
Despite the seismic changes, Silicon Valley’s top executives have remained mum. When asked about the government’s actions—ranging from the forced equity deal with Intel to threats of tariffs and even prison sentences for CEOs—leaders from Intel, Nvidia, AMD, Apple, Meta, and Alphabet offered no comment. Their silence has not gone unnoticed. Russell Hancock, CEO of the think tank Joint Venture Silicon Valley, observed, "It’s striking to see that an administration that undermines the things that built this valley—like the national labs and R&D and overseas talent—isn’t getting any pushback from tech. Like, none."
Some lawmakers say they understand the silence. Representative Ro Khanna, whose district includes Cupertino, San Jose, and Fremont, explained, "We have someone using the power of the state to bully them. They’re ducking under the table for survival so their businesses can make it through these three extra years. They’re worried about punitive tariffs or that (Trump) restricts their abilities to sell overseas or cancels the grants they need or that (he) goes on social media and rants against them and calls to fire them." Representative Sam Liccardo, who represents Palo Alto and Menlo Park, echoed the sentiment: "I know lots of C-Suite occupants who are deeply troubled … but unwilling to speak up."
Even some Republicans are uneasy. Dave Johnson, chairman of the Santa Clara County GOP, commented, "The Intel deal doesn’t pass the smell test," though he stopped short of outright condemnation. When pressed about the federal government taking ownership stakes in other companies, Johnson admitted, "Do I like the idea of the federal government owning anything? No. I could be swayed."
President Trump, for his part, has made no secret of his intentions to pursue similar deals with other American companies. In a characteristically blunt post, he wrote, "I PAID ZERO FOR INTEL, IT IS WORTH APPROXIMATELY 11 BILLION DOLLARS. All goes to the USA. Why are ‘stupid’ people unhappy with that? I will make deals like that for our Country all day long."
For Representative Khanna, the moment is pivotal: "It’s time for Silicon Valley leaders to show moral clarity and speak up against this president. This is the moment … . There’s safety in numbers." So far, though, the valley’s C-suite remains silent, even as the ground shifts beneath their feet—caught between the threat of cyber extortion and the growing reach of government into their boardrooms.
As the lines between market and state blur, and as cybercriminals and policymakers alike test the limits of corporate autonomy, the world is watching to see whether Silicon Valley’s leaders will finally break their silence—or whether the era of quiet capitulation will continue, reshaping the future of American innovation in ways no one could have predicted.
