Xi Jinping Speaks at World AI Conference as US-China Tech Rivalry Intensifies

Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed the dual nature of artificial intelligence’s opportunities and challenges, calling for a principle of “openness” and regulations to keep the technology “secure and controllable” in a speech at the country’s flagship annual AI conference. Xi’s first speech to the World AI Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai showed AI is a national strategic priority as China seeks to build greater technological self-reliance amid its tech rivalry with the United States. Earlier...

The global race for artificial intelligence has transformed into a direct contest of governance, with the United States and China actively exporting rival models of technology, funding and regulation to the rest of the world. In the West African state of Burkina Faso, dozens of young people gather at a training centre in the capital, Ouagadougou, to learn the basics of digital technology and AI, in a US-sponsored effort to develop local digital skills based on the American tech ecosystem. At the...

Xi Jinping marked his first in-person attendance at the World ​Artificial ‌Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, where Xi shared China's vision of AI diplomacy to challenge US dominance in the sector.

President Xi Jinping will speak on Friday at the opening of the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), China’s largest annual event for the AI industry. Xi’s personal attendance elevates the conference’s profile, and indicates AI development has become both a technological imperative and a cornerstone of China’s geopolitical strategy. As Washington maintains strict export controls on advanced semiconductors and restricts overseas access to top AI models, Beijing is accelerating...