Biden takes aim at 'tech industrial complex,' echoing Eisenhower

U.S. President Joe Biden warned on Wednesday in his farewell address that an American oligarchy is taking shape among a few tech billionaires who have amassed a "dangerous concentration of power," Reuters reports. 

Biden warned Americans of a "tech industrial complex," words that echoed President Dwight Eisenhower's farewell address, opens new tab in 1961. Eisenhower, closing out eight years as president, had warned of the dangers of a "military-industrial complex" gaining power in the United States.

"Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that really threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedom and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead," Reuters quoted Biden as saying from the Oval Office.

He did not mention names, but Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the world's richest man, has amassed not just vast wealth but has become a powerful adviser to Donald Trump, the Republican who will take over as president from Biden on Monday.

Musk, as well as Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executives of Amazon and Meta Platforms, will feature prominently, opens new tab at Trump's swearing-in, sitting with the Republican's cabinet nominees and elected officials.

The owner of the social media site X, Musk spent over a quarter of a billion dollars to help Trump win the November election, federal filings show, while other social media companies have donated heavily to Trump's inauguration.

Biden referred to Eisenhower's speech in his 15-minute message.

"Six decades later, I'm equally concerned about the potential rise of a tech industrial complex. It could pose real dangers for our country as well. Americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabling the abuse of power," he said.

"The free press is crumbling. Pillars are disappearing. Social media is giving up on fact checking," Biden said.