AI at the Center of the Trump-Xi Summit

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet in Washington for a three-day visit, with artificial intelligence identified as a “core topic” at the request of the United States. Sources say Beijing will discuss AI-related risks but will not share technical details that could give Washington an advantage. The United States has proposed a communication channel to coordinate defenses against malicious use of frontier AI models, while China signals willingness to join only on its own terms.

The Epoch TimesThe Hill

The Chinese Communist Party has elevated AI to a pillar of its state-run economy, viewing the technology as a strategic asset. Washington has grown wary of Chinese AI firms, accusing them of “distillation” – using large-scale queries of U.S. models to accelerate their own development. Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Defense expanded a list of companies deemed tied to China’s military, adding Alibaba, Baidu and WuXi AppTec.

The Epoch Times

• The advisory cites the use of proxy accounts and shared subscriptions to bypass restrictions on outputs from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and xAI.

The Epoch Times

• The Department of Defense’s expanded list reflects a view that AI innovations are dual-use technologies with military implications.

The Epoch Times

U.S. Commerce Secretary Scott Bessent framed AI supremacy as a national-security priority, warning that the United States cannot afford to fall behind. A Chinese insider close to the Ministry of Commerce said Beijing will decline any request to hand over algorithms or training data, emphasizing that disclosure of attack numbers would expose defensive capabilities. The Chinese Foreign Ministry rejected characterizations of China as a threat, calling for inclusive, open AI development.

The Epoch Times

U.S. analyst Kyle Chan noted President Trump’s repeated dismissal of AI existential risk as a “hoax,” suggesting the president’s primary concern is maintaining the AI boom.

The Hill

U.S. officials allege systematic distillation by Chinese firms, while China’s Ministry of Commerce describes distillation as a standard industry technique and denies wrongdoing. The United States has not released the number of AI-related cyber incidents it attributes to China, and Beijing has refused to disclose its own attack figures or defense mechanisms. These divergent accounts leave the scope of the threat and the feasibility of technical cooperation unclear.

The Epoch Times

• “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,” — Alison Szalwinski, senior vice president, The Asia Group

The Hill

• “Fear-mongering, confrontation and vicious competition will only hamper efforts toward sound global AI governance, which serves no one’s interest,” — Guo Jiakun, spokesperson, Chinese Foreign Ministry

The Hill

• “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,” — Kyle Chan

The Hill

U.S. officials hope the summit will produce a durable dialogue format for frontier AI risk, though no specific agreement is expected. Treasury Secretary Bessent’s openness to “shared risks” suggests a possible Chinese counterpart from the National Development and Reform Commission or the Cyberspace Administration. A virtual hearing convened by Representative Ro Khanna is scheduled for the day before the visit, aiming to press AI companies for testimony on safety standards and basic inspections. The outcome of these parallel tracks will shape whether a formal AI communication channel emerges.

The Hill