{
  "id": 9436505,
  "title": "Asean must watch US-China deal on AI",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/23/asean-must-watch-us-china-deal-on-ai-9436505",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-23T23:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2026/09/24/asean-must-watch-us-china-deal-on-ai"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping in Washington will likely focus on trade, tariffs, strategic rivalry and the broader trajectory of Sino-American relations. However, another issue of greater significance may emerge: artificial intelligence (AI). As international relations increasingly revolve around AI management rather than mere competition over it, the United States and China are discussing a mechanism to notify each other of AI-related incidents that could impact national security. Malaysia and ASEAN must closely monitor this development.\n\nWhile AI is just one of many factors that have shaped international relations, such as military power, nuclear deterrence, trade, energy security and strategic waterways, its influence is rapidly growing. Countries controlling advanced AI models, semiconductor supply chains, computing infrastructure, data and technological talent will gain advantages beyond the digital economy. AI touches on intelligence, cybersecurity, manufacturing, financial markets, logistics, military planning and critical infrastructure.\n\nThe US-China relationship contains both competition and cooperation. Competition is inevitable, with both countries vying for supremacy in frontier AI, semiconductors, computing power, algorithms, data centers, investment and scientific talent. However, cooperation is equally necessary, as neither country benefits from catastrophic cyber incidents, disruptions to critical infrastructure or escalating conflicts that neither intended. During the Cold War, Washington and Moscow recognized that intense nuclear competition required communication due to distrust, and AI increasingly demands a similar approach.\n\nASEAN, located between the world's two largest powers, has economic and strategic ties to both China and the United States. The region cannot afford an AI landscape divided into hostile technological blocs. While ASEAN should not simply accept rules set by Washington and Beijing, it must strengthen its capabilities in AI governance, cybersecurity, data protection and technological diplomacy. Malaysia, in particular, should pay attention to its expanding semiconductor, data center and AI ecosystems, as technological sovereignty will increasingly intersect with economic and national security interests.\n\nASEAN's diplomatic tradition of dialogue, confidence-building and incremental institutionalisation can provide valuable insights for AI governance. However, ASEAN cannot independently control every layer of the AI ecosystem, as hardware, cloud infrastructure, algorithms and data may originate in multiple countries. Therefore, ASEAN must adopt a polytropic approach, spreading and deepening its technological relationships while preserving strategic autonomy.\n\nThe Trump-Xi summit should be viewed as more than a meeting between two great powers. If Washington and Beijing can establish rudimentary guardrails against dangerous AI incidents, it will acknowledge that technological superiority does not negate mutual vulnerability. Malaysia and ASEAN should support such dialogue while ensuring that global AI governance does not become an exclusive US-China condominium. Southeast Asia and the wider Global South must have a voice in shaping AI governance. On September 24, 2026, this meeting could mark a crucial moment in international relations, as the central question of the AI age is not merely which country will lead, but whether both can compete intensely while establishing sufficient safeguards to prevent their competition or powerful machines from causing uncontrollable consequences.",
  "summary": "Artificial intelligence has an impact on critical infrastructure, making it important that Southeast Asian countries are not caught between the world’s two greatest superpowers.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Asean must watch US-China deal on AI",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/23/asean-must-watch-us-china-deal-on-ai",
        "published": "2026-09-23T23:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}