Differences in how the United States and China perceive the need for safety guardrails on rapidly advancing artificial intelligence are coming to the spotlight ahead of the upcoming summit between the two countries.

While voices in American society frequently warn of the risks of AI escaping human control and harming humanity, China is primarily concerned about the possibility of AI inciting unrest and threatening existing ruling orders.

On September 17, local time, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that with less than a week left before the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the two nations' perspectives on AI safety remain vastly different.

President Trump tends to be skeptical about the necessity of AI regulations, but U.S. industries including OpenAI and Anthropic have repeatedly raised calls to slow down development speeds to secure time for safety verification.

Discussions on AI in American society focus on ensuring that AI does not become an autonomous weapon beyond human control or a tool that facilitates weapon manufacturing.

In contrast, China places greater emphasis on the risks that AI poses to political and ideological security and the Communist Party-centric ruling order.

Chen Yixin, Minister of State Security in China, argued in a recently published article that hostile forces could use AI to mass-produce rumors, wage cognitive warfare, and incite social instability.

As a solution to this, he stated that the party's control must be strengthened.

The WSJ pointed out that these differing perspectives could become stumbling blocks for bilateral AI talks pursued on the occasion of the upcoming summit.

Ahead of the summit, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, who are leading high-level negotiations between the two countries, are scheduled to meet this weekend to address trade and economic issues along with the AI agenda, drawing attention to how much progress their discussions will make.

It was reported that when a delegation from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), an advisory body to the U.S. Congress, visited Beijing last July, Chinese officials intensively inquired about how the U.S. would structure the AI talks and whether semiconductor export controls would be on the agenda.

They reportedly claimed that U.S. and Chinese AI technologies have reached roughly equivalent levels while emphasizing the openness of Chinese AI models.

However, requests by the USCC delegation to visit the research institutes of major Chinese AI companies such as DeepSeek and Moonshot were denied.

Arguments are also being made that cooperation between the U.S. and China will be inevitable on the issue of AI safety.

Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, recently argued that the pace of AI development should be slowed down while emphasizing that U.S. export restrictions on advanced AI chips to China must be maintained.

At the same time, he stated that cooperation with China is necessary to control the global pace of AI development.

Sources also reported that Wang Huning, Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the fourth-ranking member of China's leadership, met with American business and think-tank representatives last month and appeared sympathetic to the importance of bilateral discussions surrounding AI safety guardrails.

Cui Tiankai, former Chinese Ambassador to the U.S., cited AI as an area where the U.S. and China should expand dialogue during the Xiangshan Forum, a multilateral security forum held in Beijing on September 15, stating that "the necessity of cooperation is growing."

If future AI talks are regularized or a specific consultation framework is established, who the Chinese government puts forward as its representative could serve as a signal to gauge how seriously Beijing is taking the matter.

Meanwhile, reports indicate that companies related to AI and advanced industries could be included in President Xi's delegation visiting the U.S.

The South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on September 17, citing two sources, that representatives from companies such as Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD, smartphone and electric vehicle maker Xiaomi, and AI data center optical transceiver maker Innolight could join the delegation visiting the U.S.

In addition, it is reported that CATL, the world's largest battery manufacturer from China, may also be included on the invitation list for the U.S. visit.

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