American Swaraj? Trump Urges Tech Giants to ‘Stop Hiring Indians,’ Thrusting America First Policy on Silicon Valley

President Donald Trump on Wednesday directly urged major U.S. technology companies to cease hiring Indian workers, delivering his most explicit statement yet against foreign tech talent during an AI Summit that marked a significant escalation of immigration restrictions he began during his first presidency.

Speaking to tech industry leaders including executives from Google and Microsoft, Trump declared that American companies should prioritize domestic hiring over international recruitment. “Many of our largest tech companies have reaped the blessings of American freedom while building their factories in China, hiring workers in India and slashing profits in Ireland,” Trump stated, according to Business Today. “Under President Trump, those days are over.”

The remarks represent a direct continuation and intensification of Trump’s first-term approach to immigration policy, particularly regarding H-1B visas that have historically enabled Indian tech professionals to work in the United States. Roughly three-quarters (73%) of H-1B workers whose applications were approved in fiscal 2023 were born in India, according to Pew Research Center data.

From Restrictions to Direct Opposition

Trump’s latest comments mark a clear evolution from the policy-focused restrictions of his first presidency to explicit calls for companies to avoid hiring foreign workers altogether. During his 2017-2021 term, Trump implemented a series of administrative changes that made H-1B visas significantly more difficult to obtain for Indian professionals.

During Trump’s first term, policies pushed through “narrowed the eligibility criteria for foreign workers, making it harder for H-1B visa applicants to qualify under ‘specialty occupation’ requirements,” according to Business Today. These changes resulted in increased “denial rates,” “narrowed” eligibility criteria, and proposed wage hikes, creating widespread uncertainty among Indian tech workers, according to VisaVerge.

The president specifically called out the “globalist mindset” that he argued leads American companies to build overseas operations while neglecting domestic employment opportunities.

During his earlier term, Trump “implemented policies that prioritized American workers over foreign talent,” Business Standard reported, but those measures focused primarily on regulatory changes rather than direct corporate appeals.

At Wednesday’s summit, Trump signed three executive orders specifically targeting the artificial intelligence sector, representing a more targeted approach than his previous broad-based immigration restrictions. “Winning the AI race will demand a new spirit of patriotism and national loyalty in Silicon Valley and beyond,” Trump declared.

The executive orders aim to establish what the administration calls an “AI action plan” designed to promote domestic AI development while restricting what Trump characterized as “woke AI” models. The new executive order “instructs tech companies to address what the White House sees as ‘woke AI,'” with future federal contracts potentially dependent on compliance, NPR reported.

Industry Impact and Response

Trump’s direct appeal to corporate executives represents a shift from regulatory enforcement to public pressure campaigns. Trump stated that “for too long, much of America’s tech industry pursued a ‘radical globalism’ that left millions of Americans feeling ‘distrustful and betrayed,'” according to his summit remarks.

The president specifically called out the “globalist mindset” that he argued leads American companies to build overseas operations while neglecting domestic employment opportunities. He “called out the ‘globalist mindset’ that leads American companies to build factories in China and hire workers” from countries including India, according to Digit.

The latest statements build upon Trump’s consistent opposition to foreign worker programs throughout both his campaigns and first presidency. His first-term changes “created uncertainty for Indian professionals” through a combination of policy modifications and increased scrutiny, according to immigration analysts.

However, the direct nature of Wednesday’s corporate appeals marks a notable shift in strategy. Rather than relying solely on administrative rule changes, Trump is now publicly pressuring individual companies to voluntarily reduce foreign hiring.

Broader Immigration Implications

The AI Summit remarks come as Trump prepares to implement broader immigration restrictions across multiple visa categories. Proposed changes to the H-1B visa process “could significantly affect Indian tech workers,” according to recent analysis, with the visa program playing “a vital role for U.S. tech companies, enabling them to recruit highly skilled foreign professionals, many of whom are from India.”

Industry observers note that Trump’s evolving approach reflects both continuity with his first-term priorities and an escalation in directness. While his previous administration focused on regulatory barriers, his current strategy appears to emphasize public corporate pressure alongside continued policy restrictions.

The executive orders signed Wednesday are expected to be followed by additional immigration-related measures specifically targeting high-skilled visa categories, according to administration officials who spoke on background condition of anonymity.