Attendees of the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum included scores of the world's most powerful CEOs, among them Elon Musk, Jensen Huang and Larry Fink.

Four years ago, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman struggled to get an audience with then-President Joe Biden, who said he wanted to make the Gulf country a pariah after its leader allegedly ordered the murder of a Washington-based journalist.

President Trump on Wednesday met with new Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa during his swing through Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a signal of thawing relations between the two countries following the fall of former President Bashar a-Assad.