Elon Musk flies to Seattle after joining Trump in Beijing mid-trial

Elon Musk flew from Central Texas to Seattle on Thursday evening, arriving at Boeing Field aboard his Gulfstream G650ER, N628TS, after a three-hour-and-42-minute flight from Draughon Miller Regional Airport. The trip comes just hours after he returned from Beijing, where he accompanied President Donald Trump on a state visit alongside Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Apple CEO Tim Cook, per a White House official cited by the Seattle Times.

The same week Musk was in China, his lead counsel apologized to a federal jury in Oakland for his absence during closing arguments in the Musk-Altman trial, as CNBC reported. Musk is suing OpenAI co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman for allegedly violating the company’s nonprofit founding promise. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers placed Musk on recall status after his testimony ended April 30, though it remains unclear whether he obtained permission to leave the country, according to NBC News.

Musk’s Seattle arrival follows a pattern of globe-trotting during the trial: his recent flights include a hop from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., on May 13, and a trip from Anchorage to San Francisco the same day. The billionaire has maintained a heavy travel schedule this year, logging 355 flights in 2024, with recurring stops in Palm Beach, San Jose, and Austin. Whether Seattle hosts a business meeting or a brief layover, the timing underscores the logistical gymnastics of litigating a $150 billion lawsuit while accompanying a president abroad.