Comedians Kumail Nanjiani and Ilana Glazer dropped out of performing at Salesforce\u2019s annual tech conference this week after the company\u2019s chief executive Marc Benioff made controversial remarks that showed his support for President Trump.<\/p>\n
Last week, Benioff told the New York Times<\/a> he thought Trump should deploy the National Guard to reduce crime in San Francisco, comments that sparked backlash from Silicon Valley philanthropists and Democrats.<\/p>\n On Friday, Benioff completely walked back his remarks and apologized.<\/p>\n \u201cI do not believe the National Guard is needed to address safety in San Francisco,\u201d he wrote on social media site X<\/a>. \u201cMy earlier comment came from an abundance of caution around the event, and I sincerely apologize for the concern it caused.\u201d <\/p>\n Salesforce, a software company based in San Francisco, provides a platform that businesses use to manage customer data and track sales. The company confirmed the comedians dropped out but the entertainers haven\u2019t said publicly what prompted the last-minute cancellation. A source close to the company told the San Francisco Chronicle<\/a> that Nanjiani became ill and that led to his scheduled opener Glazer to cancel as well. <\/p>\n Nanjiani and Glazer haven\u2019t publicly spoken out about Benioff\u2019s remarks about the National Guard. <\/p>\n Both comedians, though, have been critical of Trump in the past and his anti-immigrant rhetoric. Earlier this year, Glazer spoke at a \u201cNo Kings\u201d protest, which organizers say is to meant fight back against authoritarian policies pushed by Trump and his administration. This week, she promoted the next series of demonstrations, scheduled to take place on Oct. 18, stating it wasn\u2019t a partisan issue on Instagram. <\/p>\n The San Francisco Standard<\/a> reported earlier on the cancellation. <\/p>\n Benioff has grappled with a growing backlash since he made comments about Trump and the National Guard. The controversy overshadowed Dreamforce, a conference in San Francisco that featured well-known speakers including tech executives, government officials and entertainers. <\/p>\n Nanjiani played Dinesh in the HBO series \u201cSilicon Valley\u201d and co-wrote and starred in the Oscar-nominated 2017 film \u201cThe Big Sick.\u201d Glazer co-created and starred in the Comedy Central series \u201cBroad City\u201d and the 2024 comedy film \u201cBabes.\u201d<\/p>\n In their absence, comedian David Spade performed at Dreamforce on Thursday afternoon, closing out the conference.<\/p>\n Ahead of the event, which ended on Thursday, Benioff appeared to dial back his remarks. <\/p>\n On social media site X, he said he was trying to make a point about making the conference as safe as possible. <\/p>\n \u201cKeeping San Francisco safe is, first and foremost, the responsibility of our city and state leaders,\u201d he wrote on X<\/a>. Benioff also said he\u2019s donating an extra $1 million to fund larger hiring bonuses for new police officers.<\/p>\n Benioff, who has previously said he\u2019s an independent and was once a Republican, has backed Democrats and supported liberal causes such as a business tax for homeless services. But he\u2019s also been critical of public safety in San Francisco and has threatened to move Dreamforce from San Francisco to Las Vegas. <\/p>\n The conference brings nearly 50,000 people to the city, generates $130 million in revenue for San Francisco and creates 35,000 local jobs, according to Salesforce. The company announced earlier this week it was investing $15 billion in San Francisco <\/a>over five years to advance artificial intelligence. <\/p>\n On Thursday, prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist and Democratic donor Ron Conway resigned from the Salesforce Foundation board. In an email first viewed by the New York Times<\/a>, Conway told Benioff that he \u201cnow barely recognize the person I have so long admired.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYour obsession with and constant annual threats to move Dreamforce to Las Vegas is ironic, since it is a fact that Las Vegas has a higher rate of violent crime than San Francisco,\u201d Conway wrote in the email. \u201cSan Francisco does not need a federal invasion because you don\u2019t like paying for extra security for Dreamforce.\u201d<\/p>\n Conway, founder and managing partner of SV Angel, is widely regarded as the \u201cGodfather of Silicon Valley\u201d because of his early investments in major tech companies such as Google, Facebook and PayPal. SV Angel didn\u2019t immediately respond to a request for comment. <\/p>\n A Salesforce spokesperson said in a statement they have \u201cdeep gratitude for Ron Conway and his incredible contributions to the Salesforce Foundation Board for over a decade.\u201d<\/p>\n