Trump Hosts Xi Jinping at Star-Studded White House State Dinner
President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed more than 100 guests to a White House state dinner on Thursday, blending diplomacy with the glitz of a billionaire-heavy guest list. The event drew a broad lineup of American technology executives, Wall Street leaders, cabinet officials, and Supreme Court justices, underscoring the intersection of politics and business. At the head table, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Elon Musk, and AMD CEO Lisa Su joined both presidential couples, according to CNBC. Other technology figures in attendance included Amazon chairman Jeff Bezos, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Microsoft chairman and CEO Satya Nadella, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Alphabet co-founder Sergey Brin, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, OpenAI president Greg Brockman, and Dell Technologies chairman and CEO Michael Dell, per The Wall Street Journal.
In his toast, Trump struck a conciliatory tone, saying, “President Xi and I both understand we represent different systems, but the ties between our people endure, and we’ve never gotten along better.” He added that “together, we can continue to build a relationship that promotes prosperity and security for future generations.” Xi echoed the sentiment, stating that China and the United States “must act as responsible major countries” while they “meet the expectations of our peoples, keep pace with the trend of our times, and explore a new approach for major countries to get along with each other.” The remarks came amid a tit-for-tat trade war between the two nations, making the friendly exchange notable.
The two leaders were expected to discuss a range of issues during their bilateral meeting, including artificial intelligence safety, Taiwan, trade, the Iran war, and critical minerals. Xi directly addressed AI, saying that both countries have the ability and duty to ensure AI remains under human control. The dinner’s softer details—fashion choices, seating arrangements, and menu—provided a glitzy backdrop to the serious talks, highlighting Trump’s reputation for reveling in hosting grand parties. The event served as a high-profile
Shimanta Das 
