Overview
- U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent told reporters that on Sunday he proposed a system under which Washington and Beijing would notify each other if AI developments raise national-security concerns.
- The notification idea is framed by U.S. officials as a way to increase transparency and reduce surprise over severe AI failures or misuse that could threaten security.
- Chinese public reactions were muted with a trade negotiator calling the talks “good” and state news agency Xinhua saying the exchanges were candid and substantive.
- A USTR representative said U.S. export controls on advanced AI chips and semiconductor manufacturing equipment were not part of the notification discussions.
- Officials agreed to continue government-level AI talks and the proposal now faces hard questions about how to define a national-security AI incident, how to verify reports, and how the effort will interact with trade and domestic political pressures ahead of the leaders’ meeting.