Trump rejects calls to work with China on AI safety despite Xi summit progress

U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed calls to collaborate with China on artificial intelligence (AI) safety despite progress made during a recent summit, stating that cooperation could jeopardize America's dominance in the rapidly evolving technology. At the inauguration of America.gov, a new AI-powered federal government portal, Trump emphasized that the U.S. must continue its current trajectory to maintain its lead over China and other nations.

He warned that a joint venture with China could result in the U.S. sharing "secrets" with China, risking the U.S.'s technological advantage.

Following last week's summit between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington, the two countries agreed to establish an AI incident notification hotline and maintain ongoing dialogue on AI risks. The next meeting is scheduled for November in Shenzhen. The primary point of contention is the terminology used to refer to AI, with Trump advocating for the term "superintelligence" (SI), which he claims sounds less "fake," in contrast to the term AI still predominantly used by Beijing.

Trump confidently presented AI as his administration's top priority, aligning with his previous dismissal of extreme warnings about AI risks as a "hoax." He claimed that the U.S. already has safeguards in place, such as the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI, to ensure that AI companies adhere to ethical standards. The U.S. president's event in Washington highlighted the importance of AI and included participation from his Cabinet and prominent tech executives.

The administration's focus on AI comes amid growing public skepticism, as a recent poll from The New York Times and Siena University revealed that 61% of likely voters oppose building data centers to power AI technologies.