 "CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, South African-Canadian-US businessman Elon Musk, attends an official dinner with US President Donald Trump and Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on November 18, 2025. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)")
Elon Musk made a much-anticipated return to the White House on Tuesday night, attending a candlelit dinner hosted by US President Donald Trump in honour of visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The gathering, seen as a clear sign of warming ties, marked Musk’s first public appearance in Washington since a high-profile fallout with Trump earlier this year.
Their estrangement began in June when Musk publicly blasted Trump’s sweeping “Big Beautiful Bill”—a fiscal package he warned would exacerbate the national debt. Musk accused the legislation of undermining fiscal discipline, while Trump and his allies accused Musk of acting out of self-interest, saying he was primarily upset about a gradual phase-out of electric-vehicle incentives.
Following the bill’s passage in July, Musk floated the idea of founding a third party, the “America Party,” but the concept never materialised. Their animosity spilled onto social media, with Musk delivering scathing criticism on his platform X and Trump firing back on Truth Social.
At one point, Trump threatened to revoke Musk’s government contracts: “The easiest way to save money in our Budget … is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” he wrote. The public clash sent Tesla shares tumbling more than 14%, wiping out around $152 billion in market value.
Yet relations appeared to be thawing in between.
Trump opening doors for Musk again?
In September, the two briefly met at activist Charlie Kirk’s memorial, and Trump has since spoken positively about Musk again. “I like Elon … I’ve always liked him,” the president told reporters at the time. Musk, for his part, softened his tone too. He expressed regret over some of his earlier posts, admitting they “went too far.”
At the dinner, the guest list included a who’s-who of global business leaders: Apple CEO Tim Cook, Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, Paramount’s David Ellison, and Pfizer’s Albert Bourla, among others. Also present were high-level Trump allies and international figures like FIFA President Gianni Infantino and football star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Observers view this dinner as more than a social event—it appears to be a strategic rapprochement.
The Financial Times noted that Musk has also resumed his support for Republican causes, abandoning his earlier idea of a separate political party. Trump’s administration has reciprocated: Musk-ally Jared Isaacman has been re-nominated to lead NASA, and Musk’s AI firm, xAI, has reportedly secured favourable government deals.