Xi pitches China as leader of new global AI order, challenging US dominance

Chinese President Xi Jinping used China’s flagship artificial intelligence conference in Shanghai on Friday to present Beijing as a leader in shaping the next global rules for AI, while also positioning China as an alternative to the United States in the technology race.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), Xi called on countries to seize what he described as a rare historic opportunity offered by open-source AI. He said China would support developing nations in building their own AI capabilities and warned that unequal access to the technology could create “new historical injustices,” according to the monitored public feed.

Xi’s remarks marked one of his clearest statements yet on China’s ambition to influence global AI governance. He framed open-source models as a public good and compared the importance of AI to the invention of the steam engine and electricity, while urging international cooperation on standards for the fast-evolving sector.

The Chinese leader also stressed that AI systems must remain under human control. He called for early-warning and emergency-response mechanisms to reduce risks, and warned about scenarios in which autonomous systems could escape oversight. The comments appeared to be his strongest public remarks so far on AI safety.

Although Xi did not mention Washington by name, the speech effectively challenged US influence over the sector’s rules and supply chains. His pitch for a China-led AI coalition came as Chinese open-weight models continue to make gains against proprietary systems developed by US firms such as OpenAI and Anthropic, the feed reported.

The Shanghai gathering also brought fresh attention to China’s push to build international partnerships around AI. Xi said the China-created World AI Cooperation Organisation, or WAICO, which said it had 29 member countries, was a milestone for global AI development and a response to calls from Global South countries for a greater role in governance.

China also plans to expand AI cooperation with BRICS, ASEAN, Latin American and African Union countries, including training and the creation of cooperation centres, according to the feed.

The report said the conference is taking place as Washington and Beijing prepare for their first government-level AI talks under US President Donald Trump’s administration, turning WAIC into an early test of how both powers intend to compete for influence over global AI rules.

Pakistan also featured in the developments around the conference. On Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar signed the agreement establishing WAICO in Shanghai, making Pakistan a founding member of the forum. The Foreign Office said the move reflected Pakistan’s commitment to international AI cooperation, especially from the perspective of the Global South.

On Friday, Dar and the Pakistani delegation attended the WAIC opening ceremony. The Foreign Office said Pakistan supports inclusive and equitable AI governance, broader access to emerging technologies, capacity-building for developing countries, and efforts to narrow the digital divide so the benefits of AI are shared more widely.

This report is based on a monitored public feed. Source attribution: Dawn Tech.

Source: Dawn Tech - https://www.dawn.com/news/2016152/xi-pitches-china-as-leader-of-new-global-ai-order-challenging-us-dominance