Apple’s Gay CEO Dined with Brazil’s Anti-Gay President

One of the most powerful gay businessmen in the world was recently spotted dining at a table with one of the world's most frighteningly anti-LGBTQ+ political leaders.

Apple CEO Tim Cook attended a dinner held in far-right Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro's honor Tuesday night, Business Insider reports. A photo from the soiree, tweeted by Axios chief financial correspondent Felix Salmon Tuesday evening, shows Cook and Bolsonaro seated at the same table, with only one person sitting in between the two men.

The Bolsonaro dinner was held in Davos, Switzerland, as part of the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting, which is taking place this week. The event was attended by politicians and business leaders, says Business Insider, including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who was also shown to be seated at Bolsonaro's table.

Cook, whom Out once dubbed "the most powerful gay man in the world," came out publicly in a 2014 editorial for Bloomberg.

"The company I am so fortunate to lead has long advocated for human rights and equality for all," wrote Cook at the time. "We'll continue to fight for our values, and I believe that any CEO of this incredible company, regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation, would do the same. And I will personally continue to advocate for equality for all people until my toes point up."

As CEO, Cook has publicly commented on a number of political issues, including discriminatory "religious freedom" laws, which he said "rationalize injustice" in a 2015 Washington Post op-ed.

On the contrary, his tablemate, Bolsonaro, is a man who campaigned on a virulently anti-gay, anti-trans platform and issued a series of executive orders targeting Brazil's LGBTQ+, Black, and Indigenous communities on his first day in office.

Out has reached out to Apple for comment, and will update this story accordingly.

RELATED | Queer Brazilians Fear the Worst Under President Bolsonaro