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Meta has appointed mixed martial arts titan and prominent Donald Trump supporter Dana White to its board of directors as the social media platform seeks to make inroads into the next US presidential administration.
White, CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, has grown the mixed martial arts promotion group into one of the most popular sports companies in the world.
He was a vocal supporter of Trump during last year’s campaign, speaking on his election night, while the president-elect made several high-profile appearances at UFC bouts. White is also a friend of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who has documented his keen interest in martial arts in recent years.
The $1.6 billion social media platform also named two more new board members on Monday: Charlie Songhurst, a tech investor and former Microsoft executive, and John Elkann, chief executive of Exor, a European investment group. Exor is controlled by Agnelli and has stakes in Ferrari, Stellantis, Juventus Football Club and The Economist Group.
Zuckerberg said: “Dana, John and Charlie will add a depth of expertise and perspective that will help us tackle the enormous opportunities ahead [artificial intelligence]wearables and the future of human connection.”
Zuckerberg, who chairs the board, has the majority of voting power Target under its dual class share structure.
The Meta CEO has taken up cage fighting and martial arts recreationally in recent years, which some observers see as an attempt to change his image after years of scandal over issues such as privacy and moderation at Meta.
Last October, White said he reached out to Zuckerberg for help improving the UFC’s ranking system AI — a technology that Meta and its Big Tech colleagues have raced to develop and implement. He is also the owner of Power Slap, an anti-slap fight promotion company.
White said: “I was never interested in joining a board of directors until I was offered to join Meta’s board. I strongly believe that social media and AI are the future.”
He added: “There is nothing I love more than building brands and I look forward to helping take Meta to the next level.”
News of the board additions comes just weeks before Donald Trump will be ready return to the White Houseand his Republican Party is poised to control both houses of Congress.
After years of frosty relations between the president-elect and Zuckerberg, during which Trump accused his Facebook platform of repeatedly censoring right-wing voices, the social media mogul went on a charm offensive, publicly congratulating Trump on his victory and dining with him at Mar-a-Lago. Meta also donated $1 million to its inaugural fund.
Silicon Valley notables have taken similar trips, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, or donated to Trump’s inaugural fund, such as OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
Last week, Meta said it was replacing global head Nick Clegg Joel Kaplana prominent Republican known for overseeing the company’s relationship with conservatives.
The company now has a total of 13 directors on its board, including powerful venture capitalist and Trump ally Marc Andreessen, who helped recruit for Elon Musk’s panel aimed at cutting US government spending.
