US and China Set for High-Stakes AI Talks This September
The United States and China are preparing to hold high-stakes negotiations over artificial intelligence this September, as the rival superpowers grapple with how to mitigate the profound risks posed by each other's increasingly powerful frontier models.
The upcoming AI talks are a significant outcome of the Trump-Xi summit that took place in May. While the exact dates have not yet been finalized, the discussions will likely take place before Chinese President Xi Jinping's planned visit to the U.S. on September 24.
A Global AI Race
As economic, political, and military rivals, both nations have grown increasingly anxious over each other's AI capabilities amid an accelerating global race. Beijing and Washington are now heavily weighing how to regulate advanced AI models that could strengthen military capabilities, enable catastrophic cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, and disrupt global labor markets.
The September talks will be led on the U.S. side by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The identities of other key participants, as well as the exact agenda and location of the discussion, are still in the initial preparation stages.
The First Official AI Dialogue Under Trump
While former U.S. President Joe Biden previously agreed with Xi during working-level talks in Geneva in 2024 that humans—not AI—should control decisions on the use of nuclear weapons, the upcoming meetings will constitute the first official U.S.-China dialogue on AI under President Donald Trump.
The regulatory environment is already incredibly tense:
U.S. Export Controls: The U.S. has already heavily limited exports to China of some of the most advanced AI chips. Furthermore, faced with the growing capabilities and popularity of Chinese open-weight AI models, Washington is reportedly considering strict restrictions on their use by U.S. companies.
China's Defensive Stance: Meanwhile, Chinese authorities are mulling curbs on overseas access to the most powerful Chinese-developed AI models. There are also deep concerns in Beijing about the hacking potential of advanced Western systems, such as Anthropic's currently unreleased "Mythos" model.
During the May summit, Secretary Bessent stated that the primary goal of future talks would be aimed at "halting proliferation of powerful AI models... to non-state actors" and that the meetings would follow shortly after.
Seeking Real Engagement Over Politics
Analysts suggest Beijing's priority list for the discussions includes Anthropic's Mythos, gaining clarity on how the U.S. will control the release of future advanced frontier models, and determining whether Washington will formally impose restrictions on Chinese open-weight models. Currently, the Trump administration is in talks with U.S. AI companies about creating voluntary safety standards for the release of new models, though no regulatory measures have been announced.
China is reportedly looking for authentic engagement and technical discussions on AI issues rather than purely political posturing. Chinese authorities will continue internal deliberations over the next month before deciding which officials will participate.
"This is the first meeting, they're unlikely to solve any major problems," noted Paul Triolo, a partner at the DGA-Albright Stonebridge Group. "I think they will try to agree to some basic terms, like what defines a frontier AI model."
As the September deadline approaches, the tech industry will be watching closely to see if the world's two largest powers can establish much-needed guardrails in an increasingly volatile technological landscape.