US and China established an official AI dialogue with bilateral notification mechanism for AI incidents at the national security level, announced ahead of Trump-Xi summit.
The US and China have agreed to establish an official AI dialogue mechanism ahead of a planned summit between President Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in Washington. The mechanism includes a notification system designed to escalate AI incidents with national security implications to senior officials.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the agreement on Sunday following full-day talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York. Bessent outlined a proposed "notification mechanism" that would alert both sides to AI-related security concerns and help develop "a shared vision of common goals and common threats." The two delegations plan a follow-up meeting to finalize details of the reporting system.
"We think that just like any cross-border activity, moving from opaque to more transparency between the number one and number two AI powers in the world is very important," Bessent told reporters at JPMorgan's headquarters in Manhattan, where the delegations had negotiated for a full day.
The announcement comes amid concerns from AI industry leaders that the technology could spiral beyond human control without research restraint. However, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer made clear that export restrictions on advanced AI chips are not part of these negotiations.
The AI dialogue complements a broader bilateral agenda. Both sides have also formalized a "board of trade" first discussed by Trump and Xi during their May meeting in Beijing. "We just had a very successful engagement with the Chinese on trade and AI, completing where we left off in Beijing," Bessent said. "[In Beijing] we created the board of trade and began the subject of AI, and this evening those were operationalised."
Trump is scheduled to receive Xi at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday, with the formal summit taking place Thursday in Washington, including a state dinner—the first such meeting between the two leaders on US soil since 2017.
The summit occurs against the backdrop of a trade truce negotiated in October in Busan, South Korea, where the US suspended planned export controls targeting thousands of Chinese companies while China delayed restrictions on rare earths exports. According to reports, China has sought an extension through the end of Trump's term, while Washington proposed a six-month window. US officials worry that China is not honoring its rare earths commitments and is limiting supplies to Japan, which are equally critical for American supply chains.
While some US officials have explored the possibility of a bilateral AI research slowdown, Trump has rejected the concept, citing the competitive AI race with China.