(The Hill) — Billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk joined President Donald Trump on his first day in Saudi Arabia, appearing with other top business leaders for a lunch with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Musk was at the Royal Court for a coffee ceremony, followed by the lunch, when Trump arrived. The Tesla CEO and top adviser to the president was seen talking with the crown prince and other business leaders.
Trump introduced Musk to bin Salman, patting him on the back while the three men chatted for a few minutes.
Other top business leaders at the Royal Court included FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez.
It’s unclear if Musk will join Trump on other stops on his Middle East trip, when the president travels to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Musk has been a top adviser of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and has been a constant presence by Trump’s side since Election Day, joining him on Air Force One and in Cabinet meetings.
His special government status is set to end May 30, and he has faced pressure from Tesla board members to return to the helm of his company after months in Washington leading DOGE.
He outlined that the cadence of his time with the White House will decrease to 1-2 days per week in a recent interview with The Hill and other journalists.
