Chris Christie goes to billionaire summer camp: New Jersey governor hugs his wealthy friends at Sun Valley summit for the world's top tycoons
- New Jersey Governor Chris Christie launched his bid for the Republican nomination on Friday with a TV campaign
- He hobnobbed with influential figures on Saturday such as the UAE ambassador and Fiat heir John Elkann
- Annual Allen & Company conference - dubbed 'billionaire summer camp' - began in Sun Valley, Idaho, on Tuesday
- The invite-only event attracts the biggest names from the worlds of finance, technology and media
- Bill Gates, Tim Cook, Rupert Murdoch, Harvey Weinstien and Micahel Bloomberg were alsothere
- There haven't been any groundbreaking deals, according to what reporters could glean from attendees
He officially entered the presidential race on Friday.
So what better way for Chris Christie to celebrate than by hobnobbing with the world's most influential billionaire moguls.
Dressed in extremely high-waisted slacks and a casual fleece, the New Jersey governor guffawed as he hugged and chatted with tech titans at the annual Allen And Company Conference - or 'billionaire summer camp' - in Sun Valley, Idaho, on Saturday.
He is far from the favorite to win the Republican nomination, and is up against Rand Paul who notably has Silicon Valley up his sleeve, with backers such as former Facebook president Sean Parker.
However, he put in a strong effort as he and his wife Mary Pat drifted from one billionaire to the next - including Fiat heir John Elkann, United Arab Emirates ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba, and highly influential venture capitalist Vivi Nevo.
It is the penultimate day of the annual networking event and the private jets are being rounded up to retrieve the invitees from their mountain retreat.
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Animated: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie chatted animatedly with Yousef Al Otaiba, United Arab Emirates Ambassador to the US
Hugs all around! Aviv 'Vivi' Nevo (right), venture Capitalist with NV Investments, gets a hug from Christie
All industries: John Elkann (center), chairman of Fiat SpA, chats with Christie, who just announced his bid for the presidency
And another one! Christie and his wife Mary Pat also caught up with Roberto Mignone, portfolio manager for Bridger Management
Mary Pat Christie seemed to be enjoying herself at the event which brings together media, tech, politics, sports and fashion leaders
Looking happy: The Christie's looked happy as they walked back to the venue after a healthy sweep of meet-and-greets
Winding down: Bill Gates and his wife Melinda took a stroll through cloudy Sun Valley on Saturday as private jets line up to set off
Diane von Furstenberg and Barry Diller look tired but content as they come to the end of a busy week in Sun Valley
Judy Wilpon decided to spend her penultimate day with dogs rather than billionaires
Victor Koo (left), co-founder of the video website Youku, greets Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen
Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan ambled through the campus after a hefty week of meetings
John Elkann, chairman of Fiat SpA greet Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard (left), and Jennifer Gilbert, founder of Save The Date
Niall Fitzgerald, former Unilever CEO and Reuters chairman, and his wife Ingrid in matching red on Saturday
Victor Koo co-founder of the video website Youku, walks with an arm around Helen Quin on Saturday
Mark Vadon, chairman of Blue Nile Inc, chats on the phone on Saturday and Samsung CEO Jay Lee takes a stroll
While many opted for fleeces, Belle Casares, wife of Lemon.com CEO Wences Casares, opted for a more graceful poncho shawl
Gustavo Cisneros, chairman and chief executive officer of the Cisneros Group, and his daughter Adriana on Saturday
Alfonso de Angoitia, executive vice president of Grupo Televisa SA, and his wife Concha looking weary on Saturday
Yahoo! Inc co-founder and former CEO Jerry Yang looks cheery as he walks on Saturday with his wife Akiko Yamazaki
Pete Karmanos, owner/governor and chief executive officer of the Carolina Hurricanes, and his wife Danialle on Saturday
According to Variety, this year has not produced any noteworthy deals - as far as any reporters on the ground could glean.
Security at the event is incredibly strict and news outlets can only get brief snippets of gossip when the moguls agree to chat as they walk past. As reporter Brett Lang writes: 'Google could be plotting to annex Minnesota without the Fourth Estate catching wind of it.'
Barry Diller told Variety there will certainly be some partnerships to come out of Sun Valley 2015 but that is hardly noteworthy, adding: 'There's always consolidation.'
Last year, however, was overshadowed by the ongoing attempts by 21st Century Fox to take on Time Warner.
According to CNN, the days start early, with moguls heading to events as early as 7am - giving room for afternoon activities such as barbecues and river-rafting in the mountain retreat.
Disney CEO Bob Iger told reporter Brian Stelter that the value of the conference lies in having everyone all together at once.
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's COO, and AOL chief executive Tim Armstrong were spotted laughing animatedly as they FaceTimed somebody on his phone between events at the annual Allen & Company conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, on Friday
Barry Diller looked incredibly relaxed in summer shorts as he joked with his wife, fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, on Friday
James Murdoch, chief executive officer of 21st Century Fox, pictured on Friday with his wife Kathryn in an unusual minimalist dress
While James has spent most of his time with his wife, the other Murdochs - Rupert (left) and Lachlan (right) - have been pictured together a number of times since arriving on Tuesday. Rupert looked relaxed on Friday (pictured) with his glasses on
Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg looks serious as he speaks to a group of men including DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg (right, far right) on Friday
Stacey Bendet Eisner, fashion designer and wife of Michael Eisner's producer son Eric (right, on Friday), clutched her pregnant belly as she stepped out on Friday in two different glamorous outfits, outshining the casually-dressed moguls
Bob Iger (left), chairman of the Walt Disney Company, smiles on Friday. Ted Sarandos (right), head of content acquisition at Netflix, was also about on Friday
The Weather Channel CEO David Kenny (left) wears a SUn Valley fleece and holds a Sun Valley bag as he chats with New York Times columnist Andrew Sorkin (right) on Friday
Tony Abovitz, CEO of Magic Leap (left), cyclist Richard Feldman (center), and Apple senior VP Eddy Cue (right) on Friday
Color popping: Nancy Aossey, president and CEO of nonprofit International Medical Corps, celebrated Friday with a bright pink shirt
Coca Cola's Muhtar Kent (left) in a Coca Cola zip-up and Wal-Mart head of e-commerce Neil Ashe (right) pictured on Friday
Saul Pannell (left), senior managing director at Wellington, Greg Maffei (center), CEO of Liberty Media, and Carl Kawaja (right), chairman of Capital International Asset Management, on Friday
The speeches, he added, often 'expose me to something I haven't seen before' but in general 'it's mostly about the ability to convene and communicate directly with a lot of people.'
Movie and TV producer Brian Grazer told Stelter it is also a chance for CEOs to 'commiserate or celebrate or decompress' with the few other people in the world who 'understand how hard the game really is.'
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Grazer was spotted kissing his fourth fiancée Veronica Smiley, former girlfriend of John Cleese, who he proposed to last April. Grazer was previously engaged to Vietnamese violinist Nguyen Giang.
Harvey Weinstein appeared to be at the conference solo, as second wife Georgina Chapman wasn't with him while he worked the Sun Valley Lodge plaza in Idaho.
Warren Buffet was one of the later arrivals, after the media tech industry's biggest names - including Apple's Tim Cook, Bill Gates, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, and Rupert Murdoch - graced the retreat in fleeces and name tags.
The moguls mostly spend their down time cycling, relaxing, or walking through the grounds with their significant other.
Salma Hayek added an unexpected splash of celebrity to a gathering of wealthy and powerful fiugures from media, technology and finance sectors whe she attended the Sun Valley event with husband Francois-Henri Pinault, CEO of Kering
Mark Zuckerberg (left), chief executive officer and founder of Facebook, chats with Dan Rose, VP of Business Development and Monetization at Facebook, but Zuckerberg's wife Priscilla Chan doesn't look very interested...
Wealthy women: Sara Blakely (left) of Spanx and Ursula Burns (right) of Xerox were also seen at the conference on Thursday
Very sporting: Roger Goodell (left), commissioner of the NFL, and Adam Silver, commissioner of the NBA, chat between meetings
Tech giants unite: Bill Gates and Apple's Tim Cook shake hands after a chat in the grounds on Thursday
Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg looks animated as she speaks to U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter during a break on Thursday
Hollywood producer Brian Grazer kisses his fourth fiancée Veronica Smiley on Wednesday. She was previously dating John Cleese
Facebook kingpin Mark Zuckerberg bursts out laughing during a solo stroll through the grounds of the lodge in Idaho on Thursday
Roger Goodell, NFL Commissioner (left) Robert Kraft, CEO of The Kraft Group and owner of the Patriots (center), and Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, which owns ESPN
Disney's Bob Iger was later seen mingling with guests at the week-long event for the world's wealthiest and most powerful business people
Brian Roberts, CEO of Comcast Corporation (left) shakes hands with Robert D. Marcus, CEO of Time Warner Cable Inc. on Thursday
The big question now is what major deals will be made over the course of the next week.
When Tim Cook walked past, reporters asked if he felt ok about the Apple Watch, which has been something of a flop. He said nothing but raised a thumbs-up.
And Elon Musk merely grinned at photographers as he passed with his wife Talulah.
The pair have had a publicly turbulent relationship since getting together five years ago. They first married in 2010 but divorced in 2012, before marrying again in 2013 and separating months later. In January this year they reunited and friends say they plan to hold a commitment ceremony.
Movie producer and co-founder of Miramax Harvey Weinstein chuckles during a chat around a table on Thursday
He was later seen ambling through the campus wearing an Allen & Co fleece. His wife, designer Georgina Chapman, has not been seen at the conference. Earlier this year an Italian model accused Wernstein of groping her but the NYPD declined to press charges
Pinterest's Ben Silbermann and Apple's Tim Cook seemed to be enjoying a jovial conversation on Thursday
Friendly hug: Daniel Schulman, president of PayPal and chairman of Symantec, with Ursula M. Burns, CEO of Xerox
Fiat heir John Elkann (left) was dressed in a casual orange and white combination while Michael F. Neidorff, treasurer of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, opted for a more practical look
Hand-in-hand: Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO, Expedia, Inc., attends the conference with his wife Syd on Thursday
Michael Bloomberg, former Mayor of New York City, and his girlfriend, former New York superintendent of banks Diana Taylor
Tamara Mellon, former Chief Creative Officer and co-founder of Jimmy Choo, flashes her engagement ring as she arrives to join fiancé Michael Ovitz, former president of Walt Disney Company
Mellon looked as though she had a lot on her mind as she walked up to the venue on Thursday
All smiles: Mark Jonathan Pincus, co-founder of Zynga, and his wife Alison arrive on Thursday
Tim Armstrong, CEO and chairman of AOL Inc. and his wife Nancy. This is the 33rd year the event has been held.
Deep in conversation: Yousef Al Otaiba, United Arab Emirates Ambassador to the United States, and his wife Abeer on Thursday
Jack Dorsey (center), co-founder of Twitter, and Israeli and American venture capitalist Vivi Nevo (right) walk and talk on Thursday. The pair have been seen chatting on numerous occasions at the business conference
Sports heavyweight: New England Patriots owner and Kraft Group CEO Robert Kraft (left) talks to Drew Houston, founder and CEO of Dropbox
Barry Diller (pictured on Wednesday) and Hollywood agent Chris Silbermann (on Thursday) have taken to cycling around the outdoorsy event
Nikesh Arora (left), president & chief operating officer of SoftBank Corp.chats with Masayoshi Son, founder and CEO of SoftBank, CEO of SoftBank Mobile, and current chairman of Sprint Corporation, on Thursday
Billionaire businessman Henry Kravis, who co-founded Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., and his third wife Marie-Josee on Thursday
Kevin Wenig, president of eBay Marketplaces (left) chats with Argentinian businessman Marcos Galrperin and Karin Hogg on Thursday
Danny Rimmer, partner at Index Ventures (left), and businessman Scott Bommer make the most of the Allen & Company merchandise
American entrepreneur Chris Schroeder arrives on Thursday clutching a packed briefcase
David Zaslav, president and CEO of Discovery Communications, takes a stroll on his own on Thursday
Philanthropist Carrie Penner, wife of Greg Penner and Wal-Mart founder family member
Jorge Paulo Lemann, 75, a Swiss-Brazilian banker, arrives with his wife Susanna Lemann. He is said to be the 26th richest man in the world
Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services, and his boss Tim Cook after a busy day at the conference
Notoriously low-key billionaire and Zulily founder Mark Vadon arrived in an Allen & Co fleece on Thursday
Nicole Seligman, executive VP of Sony Corp, and Omid Kordestani, chief business officer at Google
Zander Lurie is one of many GoPro executives at Sun Valley. Here he strides across the campus on Thursday
Jack Dorsey (left), the creator of Twitter and founder and chief executive officer of Square, chats with Aviv "Vivi" Nevo, a venture Capitalist with NV Investments, as they arrive at the event
Bill Gates has an animate conversation with Ron Conway, founder fo SV Angel, a San Francisco-based investment firm
David Zaslav (left), president and chief executive officer of Discovery Communications which owns the Discovery Channel, arrives ahead of Evan Greenberg, who owns Zurich insurance company ACE Limited
Niraj Shah, co-founder of online homeware store Wayfair, attends the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference with Jill Shah
Dick Costolo (left), CEO of Twitter, chats with Brian Grazer, co-chairman of Imagine Entertainment in Sun Valley yesterday
Mark Thompson, president and chief executive officer of company which owns the The New York Times (left), arrives at the secretive conference alongside Michael Dell, chairman and chief executive of the computer manufacturer by the same name
Monty Meigs, retired United States Army General, and Jeff Boyd chairman and former chief executive officer of Priceline Group, a discount travel website, are pictured walking into the Sun Valley conference
Blake Krikorian, co-founder and former CEO of Sling Media which makes the Slingbox, a device which allows people to watch the programmes and recorded shows from their home TV anywhere, arrives with his wife Cathy
Doug McMillon, president and chief executive officer of Wal-Mart, walks into the conference wearing an Allen and Company branded gilet, along with Ron Meyer, vice chairman of NBCUniversal
Lionel Barber, editor of the Financial Times, and Mary Barra, Chief Executive Officer of General Motors are seen arriving at the event
Adding a sporting flavour to the occasion: Adam Silver, the commissioner of the NBA, and Jerry Reinsdorf, the owner of the Chicago Bulls
Henry Kravis, co-founder of investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., and wife Marie-Jose Kravis, walk into the conference
Jonathan Nelson, chief executive officer of Providence Equity Partners, is seen arriving at the conference while snacking on a peach
Martin Lau, president of Chinese holding company Tencent (left), Jon Oringer, founder of photo agency Shutterstock, and product designer Talia Greismann walk into the conference
David Levin, president and CEO of McGraw-Hill Education, attends the conference with Lindsay Levin, founder of Leader's Quest, a project aiming to link up influential people from across the globe. Pictured on Thursday
Jeff Wilpon (left), chief financial officer for the New York Mets, Steven Boal, president & chief executive officer of discount site Coupons.com (centre), and Casey Wasserman, chief executive officer of Wasserman Media Group on Thursday
Victor Koo, co-founder of the video website Youku, talks on his cell phone while walking into the conference on Thursday
Scott Bommer, founder of hedge fund SAB Capital (left), and Mark Papa, founder and former Chairman and CEO of EOG Resources, an oil and natural gas exploration firm, arrive in Sun Valley on Thursday
Actress Kate Greer during a break at the Allen and Company 33rd Annual Media and Technology Conference on Thursday
Elon Musk held hands with his wife Talulah Riley on Wednesday afternoon months after they ripped up their second set of divorce papers. They first married in 2010, divorced in 2012, remarried in 2013 then soon split
John William Henry, 65, principal owner of the The Boston Globe, Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club, arrives with his third wife Linda, 36, for the first day on Wednesday
Warren Buffet was one of the later arrivals on Wednesday sporting a practical jacket, with his second wife Astrid Menks. The couple married in 2006
Viacom president Philippe Pierre Dauman with wife Debbie, mother of their two children, on Wednesday
Brian Chesky, co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, and marketing director girlfriend Elissa Patel on Wednesday
Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel smiled as he strode through the grounds in a white t-shirt on Wednesday
Stacey Bendet, wife of Michael Eisner's son Eric, arrived notably more glamorous than the rest. The heavily pregnant fashion designer is pictured, left, on Wednesday and, right, on Thursday
Another sports kingpin: Stan Kroenke, (left) owner of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, and Malaysian businessman Ananda Krishnan, pictured on Wednesday
Bob Iger, chairman and chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company (left), Ben Sherwood, co-chairman of Disney Media Networks (centre) and Disney COO Tom Staggs (right) on Wednesday afternoon
Daniel Lubetzky, founder of PeaceWorks Inc., the PeaceWorks Foundations OneVoice Movement, and KIND Healthy Snacks, also cycled - but with a helmet on (pictured on Wednesday)
Tim Cook with IBM's chief executive Ginni Rometty on Wednesday. As Cook walked past, reporters asked if he felt ok about the Apple Watch, which has been something of a flop. He said nothing but raised a thumbs-up
Nirav Tolia, co-founder and CEO of Nextdoor, with his wife Megha Tolia on Wednesday, a year after he was charged with misdemeanor hit-and-run for causing a woman's car to spin and crash, injuring her head and arm
Jose Antonio Fernandez, chairman and CEO of FEMSA (right) and his wife Eva during a break on Wednesday
Muhtar Kent, chairman and CEO of the Coca- Cola Company smiles along with his wife Defoe on Wednesday
21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch walked in hand-in-hand with his wife Kathryn on Wednesday
Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company (L) and his wife Willow Bay, Director of the Univeristy of Southern California Annenberg School of Journalism and a correspondent for Bloomberg, shunned vests and looked the picture of understated California power glamour as they walked to breakfast on Wednesday
Barry Diller strode past reporters on the walk in on Wednesday with his wife, designer Diane von Furstenberg, who wore a puffer coat like many other attendees - but threw a studded leather jacket on top. DIller is von Furstenberg's second husband after Prince Egon von Furstenberg. She is his first wife
Salma Hayek's husband Franois-Henri Pinault (center, on Wednesday) talks with Israeli-American venture capitalist Vivi Nevo, right, during a break
Jack Dorsey, co-founder and now CEO of Twitter and Susan Wojcicki during a break on Wednesday. Jack has trimmed his beard and chose a leather jacket rather than sporty vest
Stan McChrystal, retired United States Army general, and Greg Maffei, President and CEO of Liberty Media Corp, on their way in Wednesday morning
Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, arrived in a cap and sunglasses with journalist, television personality and bachelor Charlie Rose in all orange, clutching newspapers and an iPad Mini on Wednesday
Matching shirts! Peter Karmanos Jr., CEO of the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Everblades, and his second wife Danialle arrived in pink shirts and she wore some patriotic starred jeans to boot on Wednesday
Steve Easterbrook, CEO Of McDonalds, also opted for a more formal look at the event on Wednesday
Spanx creator and self-made billionaire Sara Blakely brought her husband Jesse Itzler along on Wednesday
Mary Teresa Barra, CEO of General Motors (left), with her husband Tony Barra (right) on Wednesday
Product designer Talia Greismann laughed with Jon Oringer, founder of Shutterstock on Wednesday
Amid all the fleeces, Latham & Watkins marketing officer Elizabeth Hughes Eginton (left) and Chris David (right) arrived pedaling bicycles on Wednesday
Haim Saban, owner of Univision and a longtime donor to Hillary Clinton, arrived alone on Wednesday
US cyclist Richard Feldman (left) arrives on Wednesday morning for the event that brings together media, technology, sports, industry and politics. British producer John Heyman (right) also arrived on Wednesday
Craig James Mundi, Senior Advisor to the CEO at Microsoft, was also in attendance on Wednesday, and Carol Holding, wife of the late entrepreneur Robert Earl Holding
Herbert Allen, former president of Allen & Company, arrives for the Allen & Company 33rd Annual Conference, which grew to massive prominence while under his watch. Pictured on Wednesday
Former NBA star Bill Bradley was one of the many sports figures invited to attend. Pictured on Wednesday
American Businessman Alex Karp (left) and Michael Dell (right) founder and CEO of Dell Inc on Wednesday
Eric Paul Lefkofsky, co-founder and CEO of Groupon and his wife Elizabeth (left) during a break on Wednesday
Terry Ring, owner of Silver Creek Outfitters (left), and Lee Ainslie (right), head of Maverick Capital hedge fund on Wednesday
The event, hosted by boutique investment firm Allen & Company, has consistently attracted heavy hitters and spawned blockbuster deals including Disney's $19billion acquisition of ABC in 1995.
Roughly 300 attendees are invited each year, and an overwhelmingly majority of them are in the technology field.
This year's conference runs through Sunday and like every other year kicks off with a cookout on Tuesday and concludes with a more formal dinner hosted by Allen.
In between those invited guests take business and the economy, and hopefully make a big sale or acquisition.
I think he was at the wrong camp.
by Willa 105