Saudi and U.S. officials highlighted billions of dollars in new investments and expanding financial cooperation on Wednesday. The timing matched Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Washington.
Top executives from major U.S. companies attended the U.S.–Saudi Investment Forum at the Kennedy Center. According to the program, leaders from Chevron, Qualcomm, Cisco, General Dynamics, and Pfizer were present. Senior figures from IBM, Google, Salesforce, Andreessen Horowitz, Boeing, Halliburton, Adobe, Aramco, State Street, and Parsons Corp also joined the event.
President Donald Trump said that $270 billion in agreements and sales were being signed between dozens of companies. Bin Salman also emphasized the scale of the investment deals being finalized.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that the agreements signed on Tuesday would help U.S. companies strengthen their leadership in global innovation, safety, and deployment.
During a meeting at the White House, bin Salman said he would increase Saudi Arabia’s planned U.S. investment to $1 trillion. This raises the original pledge of $600 billion made during Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia in May. However, he did not provide a timeline or specific details. Trump encouraged him to go even higher and asked if the commitment could reach $1.5 trillion.
On Wednesday, the crown prince met with some of the most influential executives in Corporate America. The event followed his return to official Washington, which came with a strong endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang discussed the future of artificial intelligence. Musk said that work might become optional in the next decade or two. Huang predicted that AI would reshape the future of jobs and productivity.
This trip marks bin Salman’s first visit to the United States since the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul. The incident caused global outrage. U.S. intelligence concluded that the crown prince approved the operation. He denied giving the order but accepted responsibility as the kingdom’s de facto leader.
A $1 trillion U.S. investment could be challenging for Saudi Arabia. The country is already spending heavily on major domestic projects, including futuristic megacities facing delays and cost overruns, as well as stadium development for the 2034 World Cup.
President Trump is also scheduled to attend the investment forum. Closer business ties with Saudi Arabia could benefit him personally, as he and some associates have been involved in real estate and other deals with Saudi partners.
On Tuesday, Trump rejected any suggestion of a conflict of interest. He told reporters he had no involvement in the family business and said that the company had done very little business with Saudi Arabia.
