Xi Jinping urges multilateral AI governance amid global trade tensions
President Xi Jinping calls for international cooperation and human oversight in artificial intelligence, challenging Western export controls and advocating for capacity-building in developing nations.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for a multilateral framework to govern artificial intelligence, warning against the dominance of any single nation and the overextension of national security concepts in the sector. Speaking at the opening of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on Friday, Xi described AI development as a "symphony of international cooperation" rather than a solo performance.
Xi emphasised the necessity of a "people-centred" approach, stating that laws, technological monitoring, and emergency response systems must be implemented to ensure humans remain in control of the technology. He explicitly warned against placing one country’s security over that of others, arguing that AI should not be dominated by a single state.
To support this vision, Xi announced plans for China to collaborate with international bodies, including those from Africa, Latin America, Asia, and BRICS nations. The objective is to provide AI capacity-building opportunities to developing countries, aiming to prevent the creation of "new historical injustices" in global access to the technology.
The address occurs against a backdrop of intensifying trade tensions, with the US and European Union imposing restrictions on Chinese tech imports citing national security concerns. In May, the US Commerce Department issued guidance affirming restrictions on semiconductor shipments to subsidiaries of Chinese companies located outside China, closing perceived loopholes in its export control regime.
Domestically, AI has become a strategic pillar of China’s industrial policy, driven by state investment in a domestic ecosystem ranging from chip production to consumer applications. State media reported that daily consumption of "tokens," the industry unit of AI usage, has increased a thousandfold over the past two years, underscoring the rapid scale of adoption within the country.
