Elon Musk, Tim Cook Meet China’s Xi Jinping Along with Other Tech CEOS

Tech billionaire Elon Musk and Apple’s Tim Cook were among a cadre of tech executives spotted dining with China’s President Xi Jinping as part of the premiere’s official visit to the U.S. this week for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting to promote free trade in the Pacific region.

Musk and Cook were joined by Blackstone’s Steve Schwarzman, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and BlackRock’s Larry Fink, along with about 300 executives and officials at a gala and dinner in San Francisco on Wednesday with President Xi. Tickets for the gala cost executives between $2,000 and up to $40,000, according to reports.

The event was hosted by the U.S.-China Business Council and the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. At the dinner, Xi reportedly spoke about China’s place in the global economy and how the Asian giant can cooperate with the U.S. on technological development.

Ultimately, Xi’s visit — his first to the U.S. in six years — could represent a thaw in tensions over China’s desire to develop advanced technology able to compete with the U.S. on artificial intelligence and semiconductors.