Trump was seen tapping Musk on the stomach as he walked into the event and the tech chief was also captured chatting with other attendees at the black-tie dinner. Apple CEO Tim Cook, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and Palantir CEO Alex Karp were among the other tech executives in attendance alongside journalists from Fox News, Trump Cabinet members and the crown prince’s delegation, according to a White House guest list.

Musk’s attendance marks the latest indicator of a detente between the two men after they had an explosive falling out over Trump’s tax bill in June.

Elon Musk sits during a dinner with President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the East Room of the White House, on Nov. 18, 2025, in Washington.

AP Photo/Alex Brandon

At the time, Musk derided the legislation as an “abomination” given how much it would add to the deficit. The feud between the two also escalated to the point of Musk alleging that Trump was in convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s files and threatening to start his own third party.

He recently expressed support for Rep. Byron Donalds’s (R-Fla.) candidacy for Florida governor and is likely to donate to Republican midterm candidates in 2026, two people briefed on his thinking told The Times. A group of staffers who worked on Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency efforts are also set to host a massive reunion in Austin that he could attend this weekend, per the publication.

And in another sign that the tension with Trump seems to have thawed, Jared Isaacman, a close Musk ally, was recently renominated for NASA administrator after the White House pulled his bid earlier this year.

Spokespeople for the White House and Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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