Military Space News
INTERNET SPACE
Zuckerberg names banker, ex-Trump advisor as Meta president

Zuckerberg names banker, ex-Trump advisor as Meta president

by AFP Staff Writers
San Francisco, United States (AFP) Jan 12, 2026
Meta on Monday appointed banker Dina Powell McCormick as president and vice chairman, tapping a former member of the Trump administration to help steer the technology giant's massive AI infrastructure expansion.

Powell McCormick, who served on Meta's board, will join the company's management team as it scales what founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg described as "the massive physical and financial model that will power the next decade of computing."

"Dina's experience at the highest levels of global finance, combined with her deep relationships around the world, makes her uniquely suited to help Meta manage this next phase of growth," Zuckerberg said.

In a separate post, Zuckerberg said Powell McCormick "will be involved in all of Meta's work, with a particular focus on partnering with governments and sovereigns to build, deploy, invest in, and finance Meta's AI and infrastructure."

The appointment comes as Meta accelerates investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure, including data centers and energy supply.

In her new role at Meta, Powell McCormick's banking experience will be key. She will help guide the company's overall AI infrastructure strategy and oversee its multi-billion-dollar investments.

She will also focus on building partnerships to expand the company's investment capacity, the company said, as Meta seeks to keep up with its big tech rivals in spending massively on AI.

An Egyptian-American, Powell McCormick spent 16 years as a partner at Goldman Sachs, serving on the firm's management committee and leading its global sovereign investment banking business.

Sovereign wealth funds from the Middle East have become major investors in the AI infrastructure build-out and could play a role in Meta achieving its AI spending goals.

Her last job was at BDT & MSD Partners, a bank and advisory firm that has been involved in finding US investors for TikTok, according to news outlet Axios.

Her hiring continues Zuckerberg's political pivot to the right, with Republican Powell McCormick one of the company's most visible arrivals since Sheryl Sandberg, the former chief operating officer and member of the Clinton administration who left in 2022.

Zuckerberg has recently made a visible shift toward President Donald Trump and conservative positions, doing away with third-party fact-checking, reversing company diversity initiatives and embracing a more traditionally masculine image.

Trump congratulated Powell McCormick on the appointment in a social media post, calling her "a fantastic, and very talented, person, who served the Trump Administration with strength and distinction."

Powell McCormick served as deputy national security advisor during Trump's first term, a role in which she helped shape US foreign policy.

She is married to the Republican senator from Pennsylvania, Dave McCormick.

Related Links
Satellite-based Internet technologies

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
INTERNET SPACE
Google's Gemini seeks edge in AI for online shopping
Washington, United States (AFP) Jan 11, 2026
Google on Sunday unveiled a new iteration of its professional Gemini AI suite geared toward online retail, seeking to create seamless interactions for shoppers from product searches to customer service. Gemini Enterprise for Customer Experience (CX) will "use complex reasoning to understand intent and execute multi-step tasks on behalf of a customer taking into account their preferences and consent," Google said in a statement. It will also enable users to shop and interact with customer servic ... read more

INTERNET SPACE
Netanyahu says Israel won't let Iran restore ballistic missile programme

Germany puts ballistic missile defence shield into service

What is Taiwan's T-Dome?

Space Force operationally accepts SciTec Forge missile warning ground system

INTERNET SPACE
North Korea tests hypersonic missiles, says nuclear forces ready for war

North Korea's Kim touts new rocket launchers that could target South

North Korea's Kim orders factories to make more missiles in 2026

Denmark starts work on rocket fuel facility for Ukraine

INTERNET SPACE
Drones take thermal readings to track dolphin health

UAV swarm algorithm boosts spectrum resilience in contested airspace

RTX radar selected to support autonomous X 62A fighter testing

Spatiotemporal resilience model targets IoT unmanned fleets

INTERNET SPACE
Europe backs secure satellite communications with multibillion euro package

SpainSat NG programme completed as second secure communications satellite launches

New Laboratory Showcases Advanced Satcom Capabilities for Australian Defence Force

European Response to Escalating Space Security Crisis

INTERNET SPACE
Cyviz awarded two classified NATO defense contracts for mission critical visualization systems

Japan govt approves record budget, including for defence

German defence giants battle over military spending ramp-up

NATO looking to be 'proactive' against Russian 'hybrid threats'; NATO to buy big from US to arm Ukraine

INTERNET SPACE
MDA Space partners with Canada defence department and Telesat to deliver next generation military satcom

UK launches paid military gap-year scheme amid recruitment struggles

Malaysia raids firms in army procurement graft probe

'Not our enemy': Rush to rearm sparks backlash in east Germany

INTERNET SPACE
Trump's withdrawal list masks US pullback from climate, security and development bodies

Viral 'Chinese Trump' wins laughs on both sides of Pacific

Could Trump's desire for Greenland blow up NATO?

Macron says allies agree 'robust' security guarantees for Ukraine; Germany could join multinational force

INTERNET SPACE
Bright emission from hidden quantum states demonstrated in nanotechnology breakthrough

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2026 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.