On July 17, Xi Jinping delivered the keynote address at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, marking the first time China’s leader has addressed the event in-person since its launch in 2018. His appearance underscored the growing importance Beijing attaches to shaping the global governance of artificial intelligence (AI). In his speech, Xi emphasized four observations, including the promotion of “true multilateralism,” language Beijing increasingly uses to justify the establishment of a parallel global order under the Chinese Communist Party’s leadership.
In line with China’s ambitions to embed its own institutions into the global AI governance ecosystem, the most consequential announcement of the conference came a day before Xi’s speech, with the formal establishment of the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO), to be headquartered in Shanghai. The new international organization may prove to be China’s most ambitious effort yet to shape the future deployment and governance of AI.
Building on China’s 2023 Global AI Governance Initiative, the idea for a China-led international organization on AI was first proposed by Premier Li Qiang at the 2025 conference and reiterated in the Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) passed in March. WAICO signals China’s shift from articulating principles for AI governance to building permanent institutions through which those principles can be operationalized and normalized.
