Trump and Xi clash over AI dominance and safety as summit looms
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet on Thursday to discuss the intensifying global race for artificial intelligence supremacy. While the US leads in proprietary frontier models, China is rapidly closing the gap through open-weight models and massive deployment in robotics and manufacturing. The two nations hold sharply divergent views on AI safety: Washington prioritizes deregulation and rapid innovation, whereas Beijing advocates for centralized governance and international cooperation. Despite these differences, officials from both sides have discussed establishing a communication channel for AI incidents, though a formal agreement on slowing development remains unlikely.