# China's AI Diplomacy Working > China's AI diplomacy is gaining traction as it offers developing nations open-weight models and bypasses U.S. restrictions. - Title: China's AI Diplomacy Working · Foreign Affairs | Shortify - Summary: China's AI diplomacy is gaining traction as it offers developing nations open-weight models and bypasses U.S. restrictions. - Keywords: china, ai diplomacy, open-weight models, developing countries, us export controls, waico, un security council, ai safety, ai governance, bilateral ai talks, Foreign Affairs - Source: Foreign Affairs — https://foreignaffairs.com/china/chinas-ai-diplomacy-working - Author: Daniel Remler - Published: 2026-11-10T09:00:00+00:00 - Read time: 2 min - Topics: china, ai diplomacy, open-weight models, developing countries, us export controls, waico, un security council, ai safety, ai governance, bilateral ai talks, world, politics ## China's AI Diplomacy Strategy China has used AI diplomacy to gain competitive advantage over the United States by promoting open-weight models and bypassing U.S. export controls. > China has taken part in international AI safety discussions, but it has used them, along with talks with the United States, to paint U.S. export controls as the main obstacle to cooperation ## U.S. AI Competition Approach The United States has shifted its approach to AI competition and safety across presidential administrations, focusing on export controls and global AI governance. > The Biden administration paired sweeping technology restrictions with a narrow dialogue on risk ## China's AI Governance Initiative China launched the Global AI Governance Initiative in October 2023, calling for equal emphasis on development and security while criticizing U.S. export controls. > It called for countries to 'put equal emphasis on development and security' (though it left security to be defined by individual states) ## World AI Cooperation Organization China proposed the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) in July 2025 to provide technology and a voice in global AI rules for developing countries. > In July 2025, Premier Li Qiang proposed the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) ## Xi's Diplomatic Push Xi Jinping has led diplomatic efforts to expand AI centers for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and signed agreements on AI with multiple countries. > In Cairo, he and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi signed agreements on AI, data centers, and semiconductors ## China's AI Model Sharing Chinese developers release their best models with open weights, allowing governments to download and adapt them without relying on U.S. technology. > Chinese developers release their best models with open weights, which any government or company can download, run on its own hardware, and adapt to its own language ## Bilateral AI Talks U.S. and China held talks in Geneva in May 2024, but Chinese diplomats steered discussions away from AI risks and focused on development. > Chinese diplomats steered the discussion away from risks for hours and declined to even explain China’s own AI regulations beyond a superficial overview ## August 2024 Consensus China published an 'eight-point consensus' after the Trump-Xi summit, framing AI talks within economic and trade mechanisms rather than security discussions. > It described the dialogue as an exchange on the 'risks and benefits' of AI ## China's Safety Claims China claims its AI models are safe but has limited safety testing, with only five of ten leading developers publishing safety results over the past year. > Concordia AI found that only five of China’s ten leading developers published safety test results for any model over the past year ## U.S. Response Strategy The United States should require Chinese developers to publish safety evaluations and disclose incidents to maintain competitive advantage in AI governance. > Chinese developers must commit to publishing safety evaluations at least as extensive as those that leading u.s. developers publish today ## AI Governance Competition The United States controls key semiconductor supply chain chokepoints and has more transparent safety testing than Chinese developers. > U.s. developers also conduct increasingly extensive and transparent safety testing, which chinese developers avoid ## Next Steps for AI Talks The next U.S.-China AI meeting in November should test Beijing's seriousness about safety through concrete commitments on model safety and transparency. > Washington should set two conditions for it and future meetings ## U.S. AI Ecosystem Advantage U.S. companies already offer the best technology and have a stronger safety testing framework than Chinese developers. > U.s. companies already offer the best technology, but washington has yet to put real diplomatic weight behind them ## Global AI Governance The United States should rally partners around shared safety measures through initiatives like the White House Accord on Super Intelligence. > Under the White House Accord on Super Intelligence, signed in September, six leading u.s. companies committed themselves to internal controls, external audits, and independent oversight ## China's AI Strategy Impact China's AI diplomacy is gaining traction as developing countries adopt open-weight models and bypass U.S. export controls. > A growing number of states are embracing China’s message, and chinese open-weight models are gaining users across the developing world ## Key takeaway China's AI diplomacy is gaining traction by offering developing nations open-weight models and bypassing U.S. restrictions.