ABSTRACT

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 24, with artificial intelligence among the topics Trump said would be discussed. Trump told reporters on Friday that AI would be among many things being discussed, and analysts say expectations are low for any breakthrough on trade, Taiwan or technology transfers and lower still for a major agreement on AI safeguards.

The Hill

Trump and Xi to meet Sept. 24 in Washington, with AI on the agenda

Sep 20, 2026, 5:00 PM

Context

Expectations are low for Trump and Xi to announce breakthroughs on the top issues of the bilateral relationship: trade, Taiwan and technology transfers. Their summit in Beijing in May was largely viewed as heavy on ceremony and light on substance. On AI security or safeguards, analysts said the most they are looking for this time is whether Washington and Beijing can set up a format for dialogue.

Intense competition for primacy and mutual distrust have so far delayed any U.S.-China conversations about AI safeguards and regulations. In a Sept. 8 social media post, an artificial intelligence researcher warned that AI developers believe the technology could kill off humanity by the end of the decade. A few days later, Dario Amodei, chief executive of Anthropic, called for the heads of major AI companies to commit to slowing down development to allow safety regulations to keep up.

One concern for the U.S. is AI development inside frontier labs, which poses the greatest risk of AI breaking out from under human control and carrying out catastrophic actions related to weapons deployment and infrastructure shutdowns, among other potential threats, according to the report.

In 2024, former President Biden and Xi agreed that humans, not AI, should control nuclear arms, and Democratic lawmakers included that directive in federal law as a provision in the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act. Democrats want Trump to bring that up with Xi when they meet next week.

Bessent's caution on AI and his influence within the administration are likely to move the talks forward, according to the report. An open question is whom Xi will assign as Bessent's counterpart. Candidates named in the report include Ding Xuexiang, China's tech industrial czar; the heads of China's National Development and Reform Commission, which the report says is largely responsible for managing China's domestic economy; or top officials with China's Cyberspace Administration (CAIC).

All Perspectives

President Trump: Trump has dismissed AI's existential threats as a 'hoax,' a view analysts say aligns with China's general perspective. He told reporters on Friday that AI would be among many things being discussed at the meeting next week.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent: Bessent told Axios on Wednesday he is open to talks about 'shared risks' around AI in talks with Beijing.

China's top spy chief: China's top spy chief warned in an article published last week that AI could pose a direct threat to the Chinese Communist Party's hold on power, described in the report as an unusually blunt and public call to arms in a tightly controlled political and media environment.

Alison Szalwinski, The Asia Group: "We're at a point where both the United States and China appear to agree on some of the risks posed by AI, particularly around issues of cyber capabilities and loss of control," said Szalwinski, senior vice president at strategic and capital advisory firm The Asia Group. "The challenge is that there's some really significant disagreements on how to manage those risks, and whether AI governance can be separated from the broader strategic U.S.-China competition." She added: "At this point, the immediate goal is less about negotiating a major AI agreement, we're just not there yet, and more about establishing a durable channel for discussing frontier AI risk."

Dario Amodei, chief executive of Anthropic: Amodei called for the heads of major companies to commit to slowing down development to allow safety regulations to keep up. He also warned that the U.S. must maintain an advantage over China's AI development, calling it a national security imperative, and criticized Chinese companies' 'distillation' — using American AI models to speed up developing their own technology.

Guo Jiakun, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson: "Fear-mongering, confrontation and vicious competition will only hamper efforts toward sound global AI governance, which serves no one's interest," Guo said in response to questions about Amodei's manifesto. He added that "All parties should jointly promote the open and inclusive development of AI for good and for all."

Kyle Chan, Brookings Institution: "I don't think that Trump is feeling any pressure about the existential AI risk issue. He calls it a hoax multiple times. It reminds me very much of how he treats climate change," said Chan, a fellow in the John L. Thornton China Center at the Brookings Institution. "I think his primary concern is keeping the AI boom going, keeping the stock market going, keeping the data center boom going." On Xi's choice of a counterpart for Bessent, Chan said, "Depending on which of those two would send a different signal," adding that "The NDRC head has been involved in investment talks and joint AI development talks with other countries … CAIC would be a signal about a more serious discussion about AI regulation and safety."

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.): "We urgently need an agreement with China on basic inspections and safety standards," said Khanna, the ranking member of the House Select Committee on China, who is convening a virtual hearing the day before Xi's visit on how to pace AI development responsibly and address shared risks, featuring experts in the field. He also struck out against what he said was silence from leading American artificial intelligence companies: "After multiple requests to OpenAI and Anthropic, they haven't committed to testifying," he said, raising the possibility of subpoenas if Democrats take the majority after the midterms.

Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.): Moolenaar, the chair of the House Select Committee on China, wrote to Trump on Friday that the U.S. should "slow down" China's AI development "as much as possible" by limiting access to advanced AI products. "I encourage you to ensure that no one in your administration is granting the PRC [People's Republic of China] any concession or pause in policy action that could contribute to the PRC's attempts to catch up to the U.S. and overtake our lead in AI," he wrote.

Republicans in Congress: Republicans are largely deferring to Trump's position of not wanting to do anything that will hamper America's competitive edge, though some are hawkish on making sure Trump holds Xi's feet to the fire in protecting against Chinese theft of American technology and restricting U.S. commercial sales that could give Chinese companies an edge.

Democratic lawmakers: Democrats want Trump to raise with Xi the 2024 Biden-Xi agreement that humans — not AI — should control nuclear arms when the two meet next week.

Position not represented in the source reporting: Xi Jinping; OpenAI; Anthropic.

Gaps & Unknowns

The source does not name the artificial intelligence researcher who warned in a Sept. 8 social media post that AI developers believe the technology could kill off humanity by the end of the decade.
The source does not name China's top spy chief who wrote the article warning that AI could threaten the party's hold on power.
The source does not state what specific AI safeguards, if any, the two governments would discuss or agree to at the Sept. 24 meeting.
The source does not state the date of the May summit in Beijing beyond the month.
The source does not state the calendar date of Khanna's virtual hearing, describing it only as the day before Xi's visit.
The source does not state whether OpenAI or Anthropic have given reasons for not committing to testify at the House hearing.

Sources & Further Reading

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