Overview
- Representatives from 29 countries signed an agreement on July 17 to establish the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization with its headquarters in Shanghai and the United Nations secretary-general attending the ceremony.
- President Xi Jinping framed the launch as global cooperation and pledged 5,000 AI training and research slots over five years plus cooperation centers for ASEAN, the Arab League, the African Union, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and BRICS members.
- Chinese companies showcased major technical advances at the conference, including Moonshot’s Kimi K3 model, Zhipu’s GLM-5.2 and Huawei’s Atlas 950 SuperPoD, which officials say help offset U.S. export limits on advanced chips.
- The conference drew over 1,100 companies and 1,400 guests but notable absences of major U.S. tech firms underscored a split between Beijing’s governance track and U.S.-led initiatives such as Pax Silica.
- Analysts say the immediate test is delivery: observers will watch whether training slots, regional centers and promised technology access materialize and whether upcoming U.S.-China AI talks produce practical cooperation.