A global AI safety strategy depends on US-China cooperation. They each see the other as the problem

As concern rises over the risks of artificial intelligence, hopes for any kind of global approach on safety depend on cooperation between the U.S. HONG KONG (AP) — As concern rises over the risks of artificial intelligence, hopes for any kind of global approach depend on cooperation between the U.S. and China — superpowers that seem only to be more skeptical of each other’s AI strategy.

AI governance is expected to be on the agenda in a meeting planned for next week in Washington between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The topic has gained urgency in both countries, with American tech leaders saying that averting worst-case scenarios for rogue AI depends on a degree of cooperation with China. But both countries are vying for a decisive advantage on AI, with Trump warning that any efforts to regulate the technology would help China.

That sets up a meeting in which any agreements might be superficial but a possible start to something larger. “A formal agreement or consensus may be near impossible, but they do not need to go that far,” said Samm Sacks, a senior fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies’ Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs. “Trump and Xi just need to create political space by acknowledging AI poses risks to both countries.” China and the US are increasingly at odds on AI Trump has pushed back on calls to strengthen regulation of the technology, claiming that doing so could cause China to eclipse America on AI.

He has repeatedly declared that the nation that leads on the technology “wins.” “We are leading China, and all others,” Trump said Monday on social media. The two countries are moving the technology forward in different ways. companies are chasing AI frontiers with computing power supported by cutting-edge chips and the country’s rapidly expanding data center infrastructure.

China is pursuing wide global adoption of its open-source, more affordable models. Chinese AI models have made major advances and gained traction with American companies even as U.S.-led restrictions bar China from getting the world’s most advanced AI chips. While most American frontier models are closed-source, with their design elements kept secret, U.S.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday the U.S. needs to develop more open-source models to counter China. has accused China of “aggressive, malicious” efforts to extract capabilities from American AI systems.