Following OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, Apple CEO Tim Cook expressed his concern over recent ICE actions in Minneapolis in a leaked internal email obtained by Bloomberg. Cook said he was “heartbroken by the events” following the deaths of two U.S. citizens during federal immigration operations and emphasized the importance of engaging with the White House on issues that matter to all Americans.
NEW: @tim_cook responds to ICE killing in Minneapolis in internal memo to employees, saying it’s “time for deescalation” and that he had a “good conversation” with Trump about the situation this week where he shared his views. Story on @TheTerminal. pic.twitter.com/DYtsU01h7N
— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) January 28, 2026
The message comes amid growing pressure from tech employees to have their leaders publicly oppose ICE operations and cancel company contracts with the agency. Organizers of ICEout.tech, who have petitioned multiple tech CEOs, said they welcomed Cook’s statement but noted that broader action across the industry is still needed.
Cook’s email also referenced a “good conversation” with President Trump, which drew criticism from some staff who viewed it as a mixed message given the administration’s role in the Minneapolis events. The disclosure of Cook’s internal communication adds him to the list of tech executives responding to employee concerns over federal enforcement while highlighting the tension between internal messaging and public perception in politically sensitive situations.
