King of Jordan meets leaders on sidelines of Sun Valley Conference in Idaho

The sign for the Sun Valley Resort is seen ahead of the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho. (AFP)
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Updated 10 July 2025
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King of Jordan meets leaders on sidelines of Sun Valley Conference in Idaho

  • King Abdullah II emphasized the need to modernize the economy and administration to enhance Jordan’s competitiveness

LONDON: King Abdullah II met with various business and technology leaders during the Sun Valley Conference taking place this week in the US state of Idaho.

The one-day annual gathering on July 8 brought together leaders from various fields, including technology, business, media, and entertainment.

The conference, funded by the private investment firm Allen & Company, is known as the Sun Valley Media and Technology Conference and is often referred to as the “summer camp for billionaires.” Alongside politicians, several technology and media leaders attended this year’s event, including the CEOs of Apple, Disney, and OpenAI.

On the sidelines of the forum this week, King Abdullah II met with representatives from several major international and US companies operating in sectors such as industry, mining, technology, trade, transport, defence, and media, the Petra news agency reported.

He also had a meeting with Scott Bessent, the US Treasury secretary. King Abdullah emphasized the significance of modernizing the economy and administration to enhance Jordan’s competitiveness, attract investments, and build partnerships, Petra added.

Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan and Alaa Batayneh, the director of the king’s office, attended the meetings.


UAE president holds talks with Elon Musk on AI and technology cooperation

Updated 41 min 57 sec ago
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UAE president holds talks with Elon Musk on AI and technology cooperation

ABU DHABI: UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan met on Sunday with Elon Musk for talks focused on artificial intelligence, advanced technology and international cooperation in emerging sectors.

According to WAM, the two discussed ongoing developments in AI and next-generation technologies, and how such tools could be deployed to improve quality of life, accelerate global innovation and support long-term economic development.

Both sides stressed the importance of international partnerships and knowledge exchange to speed up technological adoption and strengthen countries’ ability to respond to future challenges.

The meeting was attended by senior UAE leaders including the crown princes of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. 

Musk has maintained warm ties with the Emirates in recent years, appearing at government-backed technology forums and positioning Tesla and SpaceX as partners in the region’s innovation push. 

He spoke at the World Government Summit in Dubai in 2017 and again in 2023, where he praised the UAE’s focus on digital transformation.