Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday cast Beijing as the champion of a new global AI order, using China’s premier tech conference to promote open-source technology and challenge US influence over the rules governing the fast-moving sector.
In a speech to the opening ceremony of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, Xi urged countries to “seize the rare and historic opportunity” of open-source AI, and pledged to help developing nations build AI capabilities, warning against the emergence of “new historical injustices” from unequal access to the technology.
The remarks amounted to Xi’s clearest articulation yet of China’s ambition to shape global AI governance, framing its open-source models as a global public good and positioning Beijing as an alternative to Washington at a pivotal moment in the race for technological leadership.
Comparing AI’s significance to the invention of the steam engine and electricity, Xi outlined a vision in which China shares AI technology and expertise with countries across the Global South, while leading global efforts to create standards governing the emerging technology.
The speech pitched China’s AI coalition as a rival to the US-led “Pax Silica” international initiative to secure global AI and critical mineral supply chains, though Xi avoided naming Washington.
