The United States and China are planning talks on artificial intelligence in September, according to Reuters, which would mark the first official AI dialogue between the two countries under President Donald Trump.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will lead the U.S. delegation, with dates, participants, and agenda still to be finalized
Wong Yu Liang/Getty Images
The United States and China are planning talks on artificial intelligence in September, according to Reuters, which would mark the first official AI dialogue between the two countries under President Donald Trump.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will lead the U.S. delegation, Reuters reported, drawing on five sources with knowledge of the plans who requested anonymity given that the details have not been made public. The talks are expected to take place before Chinese President Xi Jinping's planned visit to the U.S. on September 24, though specific dates have not been set.
Who will attend from each country, where the meeting will be held, and what will be discussed have all yet to be determined. One source said that China will spend the coming month working through internal consultations to determine which ministry officials should be sent to the dialogue. China is seeking technical engagement on AI issues rather than political talks.
The talks are a significant outcome of the Trump-Xi summit in May. Scott Bessent said in May that future discussions would be aimed at halting the spread of powerful AI models to non-state actors and that meetings could begin within four to eight weeks. China's foreign ministry confirmed after the summit that the two nations had agreed to establish intergovernmental AI talks but has not commented publicly since.
Both sides are grappling with the challenge posed by cutting-edge AI systems whose potential applications include bolstering armed forces, attacking power grids and financial systems, and upending employment. The U.S. has imposed export restrictions on some advanced AI chips destined for China. The U.S. is exploring whether to limit American companies' use of Chinese open-weight AI models. Chinese authorities, meanwhile, have been discussing potential curbs on overseas access to the most capable Chinese-developed AI models.
The planned September talks follow a broader competition between Beijing and Washington over AI governance. At the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai last week, Xi Jinping framed China as the leading advocate for open-source AI, pledging training programs to developing nations and criticizing what he described as nations placing their own security interests above others — language understood as a reference to U.S. chip export controls. The conference also saw 29 countries sign on to establish a new AI cooperation organization headquartered in Shanghai, a rival to the U.S.-led "Pax Silica" initiative, which counts 35 member countries.
Paul Triolo, a partner at DGA-Albright Stonebridge Group, said the first meeting is unlikely to resolve major issues. "I think they will try to agree to some basic terms, like what defines a frontier AI model," he said.
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