Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for countries to establish early warning and emergency response systems for artificial intelligence, marking his most extended public remarks on AI safety and signaling China’s intent to position itself as a leader in international AI governance.
Speaking at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference, Xi said nations should “take seriously the various types of inherent and secondary risks that AI may trigger.” He called for “laws and regulations, technological monitoring, early warning and emergency response systems” to “strengthen the line of security, prevent abuses and malicious use, and ensure that AI is always under human control.”
The speech reflected a notable shift in tone from Beijing’s previous posture, which had emphasized rapid AI development and deployment. Xi’s endorsement of human oversight and emergency response mechanisms aligns China’s stated position more closely with regulatory frameworks emerging in Europe and other jurisdictions that have called for guardrails on advanced AI systems.
However, Xi also used the platform to criticize what he described as countries “overstretching the national security concept in the field of AI and placing one country’s security over that of others”, a clear reference to the Trump administration’s export controls limiting access to advanced AI models such as Anthropic’s Mythos.
He urged countries to “encourage inclusiveness and promote mutual learning between civilizations” and called for better global governance of AI, describing the technology as “an invaluable asset that encapsulates humanity’s collective wisdom.”
China has taken concrete steps alongside the rhetoric. Last week, Beijing launched the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organisation (WAICO), a multilateral body with 29 founding members including Indonesia, Malaysia, Russia, Pakistan, Brazil, and South Africa. Several of these nations are also members of the BRICS bloc, which China has sought to strengthen as a counterweight to Western-led geopolitical groupings.
Xi also noted that China is “ready to be more open, take more practical actions, and assume a more visionary perspective” on AI cooperation.
Sources: Chinese President Xi Jinping wants emergency response systems to keep AI in check (The Register, July 2026); Xi Jinping positions China as open-source AI leader at WAIC 2026 (Quartz, July 2026)