After spending more than two decades in a coma, Prince Al-Waleed bin Khalid Al Saud, often referred to as the “Sleeping Prince”, has passed away — ending one of the most emotionally enduring and medically mysterious chapters in modern royal history.
But while tributes and condolences flooded in from around the world, one response has taken the internet by storm: a cryptic and poetic post from tech billionaire Elon Musk, shared just hours after the Saudi royal family confirmed the prince’s death.
“A mind suspended in time. What could he have seen — or dreamed?”
No tag. No photo. No further explanation.
And just like that, a royal tragedy collided with the mystique of Elon Musk, sparking a global wave of curiosity, speculation, and conspiracy theories that show no sign of slowing down.
The Prince Who Slept Through Generations
Prince Al-Waleed bin Khalid, the son of Prince Khalid bin Talal, suffered severe brain trauma in 2005 after a devastating car crash while studying at a military academy. At just 18 years old, he slipped into a coma that would last nearly 20 years.
Over the years, rare videos of the prince — showing minor reflexes or movement — would periodically go viral, reigniting hope among Saudis and global well-wishers. His room became a symbol of unwavering faith and medical perseverance, maintained by a dedicated medical team and his family.
But on July 20, 2025, the royal household announced that the prince had peacefully passed away, surrounded by family. The news trended instantly across the Arab world — but the global story didn’t explode until Elon Musk pressed ‘post.’
Why Did Elon Musk React?
That’s the question no one can quite answer — and the reason the post has become one of Musk’s most talked-about in recent months.
Musk’s X message, now viewed over 64 million times, was subtle yet haunting. And it immediately ignited speculation that there may have been a personal or scientific connection between Musk and the prince — particularly through Neuralink, Musk’s brain-machine interface company.
According to one 2022 Saudi tech summit report, members of the Al Saud family were briefed privately by Neuralink researchers on potential clinical trials abroad. Although the prince’s case was never publicly confirmed as a candidate, Musk has previously spoken about coma patients being one of the long-term targets for Neuralink’s regenerative technology.
In an unearthed 2020 interview, Musk said:
“If we could restore even minimal neural function in long-term coma patients… it would be a miracle. But I believe it’s possible. One day, we might speak to someone who hasn’t spoken in decades.”
Did Musk once approach the prince’s family with an experimental proposal?
Was the post an expression of private regret? Or something more profound?
A Mystery Only He Can Frame
Elon Musk is no stranger to ambiguity — nor to posting with timing that feels anything but random. From mourning messages for engineers who pass in silence, to subtle references to theoretical physics and consciousness, Musk uses words as riddles, and the world never stops trying to decode them.
And in this case, the symbolism is impossible to ignore.
“A mind suspended in time.”
In just seven words, Musk revived public imagination:
What is the experience of two decades in darkness?
Can dreams last that long?
Could Neuralink have unlocked something we weren’t ready for?
Forums across Reddit and X are now flooded with threads titled “What did Musk mean?”, “Did he try to save the prince?”, and “Neuralink. Saudi Arabia. The Silent Patient.”
Reactions Across the Globe
In Saudi Arabia, Musk’s post has been met with a mix of gratitude and intrigue. Some view it as a respectful tribute. Others are now demanding transparency from the royal family about whether there was ever an attempted Neuralink collaboration.
Meanwhile, in Silicon Valley, insiders are whispering that this post was no accident — and that it may be a quiet signal of upcoming Neuralink breakthroughs related to consciousness recovery.
Neuroscientist Dr. Amina Rahbari, who previously consulted for brain-computer interface projects in Europe, offered this perspective:
“If Musk believed there was something left in the prince’s mind — even something unreachable — that message may be his way of honoring what science couldn’t yet touch.”
Final Thought: A Farewell or a Foreshadowing?
Prince Al-Waleed’s passing marks the end of a 20-year vigil. But in a strange twist, Elon Musk may have given it a new beginning — a mystery that now spans medicine, memory, and machine.
Was it just a poetic tweet?
Or the final line of a story the public never got to read?
One thing is certain: the mind of the Sleeping Prince may be at rest…
But the world’s questions are wide awake.
