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 Donald Trump was in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, the first leg of his three-nation visit to the Middle East this week meant to tackle multiple crises and conflicts across the region.