A visitor walks in front of an AI billboard during the PT Expo on September 22, 2026 in Beijing, China.
Kevin Frayer | Getty Images News | Getty Images
BEIJING—Chinese President Xi Jinping told U.S. President Donald Trump that there are more opportunities for cooperation than competition when it comes to artificial intelligence.
This is the state media’s reading of the meeting between the two leaders held in the Oval Office of the White House on Thursday local time.
“The two countries can continue AI dialogue, exchange views on risks and benefits, and jointly protect against misuse and malicious use of AI,” Xi said in Chinese, according to a CNBC translation of a readout from state media.
He noted that AI is important to both the United States and China. “There is competition on both sides, much less cooperation,” he said.
President Xi also emphasized that humans should maintain control over technology and that AI should support human progress.
The United States has restricted China’s ability to access advanced semiconductors to train AI models, accusing Chinese companies of participating in the illegal extraction of American AI capabilities.
Recent incidents have raised concerns that increasing autonomy in AI models could make attacks faster and harder to contain.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said after meeting with Chinese negotiators in New York that the two countries discussed establishing a “U.S.-China AI Dialogue” earlier this week. He said the US is proposing to introduce an alert system for AI incidents.
China’s Ministry of Commerce confirmed on Thursday that senior trade negotiators held first-ever discussions with the United States on artificial intelligence.
