China and US hold first talks on AI, but reach no agreement

China and the US have held a formal dialogue on artificial intelligence (AI) for the first time. The talks were part of the bilateral economic and trade consultation mechanism and were led by China's Vice Premier He Lifeng and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. They were part of the eighth round of consultations in New York. According to The Next Web, the talks took place on September 20.

China's Ministry of Commerce says the AI talks were productive and that the sides agreed on "several issues." The ministry did not say which ones.

Proposal for an alarm system

According to The Next Web, the US proposed an alert system for AI incidents that could threaten national security. Neither government mentioned the proposal in its official statements during the visit. The sources do not say when such a channel might be established.

During Xi Jinping's visit, he told Donald Trump, according to The Next Web, that AI must remain under human control. The leaders discussed how to prevent misuse of AI, and Trump said the parties should keep talking about the issue.

However, no AI agreement was signed during the visit. The same was true of Trump's visit to Beijing in May. No safety measures or joint testing of AI models have been agreed either.

Trade truce extended

On trade, China's Ministry of Commerce cites agreement on implementing existing deals, on reciprocal tariff cuts and on creating trade and investment councils. The sides also agreed to extend the arrangements reached in Kuala Lumpur last year.

The trade truce has been extended beyond its original expiration date of November 10. According to The Next Web, Bessent has announced that it now runs until January 10, 2027. However, the sources do not fully agree on dates and terms, so the deadlines should be treated with caution.

Overall, according to The Next Web, there were no major new deals, and no breakthroughs were reported on Taiwan and Iran.

Next meetings

The two leaders are expected to meet again at the APEC summit in Shenzhen in November and the G20 summit in Miami in December.