Dreamforce, the single largest tech conference in the Bay Area, officially kicked off Tuesday in the Bay Area.
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff opened the two-day San Francisco conference by highlighting emerging technology at the company being built to bring people together.
The conference launch comes after Benioff clarified comments he recently made supporting President Donald Trump’s proposal to deploy the National Guard in San Francisco.
An article published last week by the New York Times quoted Benioff saying he would support the president’s plan of bringing in the National Guard to clean up San Francisco. The comments did not sit well with city leaders.
Amid the backlash, Benioff posted a lengthy message on X:
“When I was recently asked about federal resources, my point was this: each year, to make Dreamforce as safe as possible for 50-thousand attendees, we add 200 additional law-enforcement professionals … coordinated across city, state, and other partners,” Benioff wrote. “It’s proof that collaboration works and a reminder that the city needs more resources to keep San Franciscans safe year-round.”
Benioff also praised the city’s efforts to hire more police.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins still plans to hold a news conference on Wednesday with other city leaders, where she plans to publicly reject Trump’s troop proposal.
Salesforce founder Marc Benioff appears to be walking back comments he made last week in which he welcomed the deployment of National Guard troops to San Francisco. Sergio Quintana reports.