Xi calls for equitable AI governance

President Xi Jinping unveiled on Friday a set of concrete measures to help developing countries build artificial intelligence capacity, including 5,000 training opportunities over the next five years, as he called for joint efforts to build a just and equitable system for global AI governance.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 2026 World AI Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance, held in Shanghai, Xi said that China will develop international AI application cooperation centers with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the League of Arab States, the African Union, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS.

China will also promote the deployment of MAZU, an AI-powered meteorological early-warning solution, in 30 countries, he said.

Xi announced the establishment of the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization as "a major move by China to answer the call of the Global South and unite the international community" to vigorously promote AI development and governance.

On Thursday, representatives of 29 countries signed an agreement establishing the organization. With headquarters in Shanghai, it will be the world's first intergovernmental organization dedicated to AI.

"It will be an important milestone in the history of AI development," Xi said, noting that AI development should be a symphony of international cooperation instead of a solo performance by a single country.

In his keynote speech, Xi said China believes that all countries should take a people-centered approach and develop AI for positive and good outcomes and for humanity.

He stressed the need to uphold openness and win-win cooperation and promote innovation-driven development, calling for greater openness, collaboration and sharing in open-source development, technological innovation and AI applications to empower industries, upgrade traditional sectors and foster emerging and future industries.

Xi called for strengthening risk awareness to ensure that AI is secure and under human control. He also urged stronger legal, monitoring, early-warning and emergency-response systems to prevent the misuse or malicious use of AI, while opposing the overstretching of national security concerns in the AI sector or placing one country's security above that of others.

"We should … ensure that AI is always under human control," he said.

Xi also called for countries to encourage inclusiveness and mutual learning among civilizations, saying that the values of AI should be shaped with humanity's common values, and AI technologies should be used to deepen understanding, tolerance, exchanges and sharing among all civilizations.

"AI development and its application should not erode or undermine the diversity of world civilizations or the uniqueness of cultures of different countries," he said.

Xi advocated solidarity and stronger global AI governance, urging countries to work through the United Nations to align development strategies, governance rules and technical standards, in order to form a consensus-based global governance framework at an early date.

He also called for stronger capacity-building support for the Global South to bridge the AI and digital divides and prevent creating new historical injustice in AI.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said no country should remain merely a consumer of AI, and that every state should have the opportunity to develop its own digital infrastructure and institutional capacity.

Tokayev described the establishment of the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization as a decision of historic significance, saying that it could become an important pillar of the global AI governance architecture and a platform for mutually beneficial cooperation.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said his country views AI as a bridge for international cooperation rather than a source of geopolitical rivalry, and supports an open, multi-aligned architecture that enables collaboration across regions, political systems and governance models.

Developing countries should have meaningful and equitable access to AI technologies, data infrastructure and localized tools, he said.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said that although AI is already reshaping many aspects of people's lives, technological progress does not automatically become human progress, which depends on the choices countries make together.

"Thailand, therefore, commends the foresight of President Xi Jinping and his government for convening this important meeting and for advancing international cooperation on AI governance, including the initiative to establish the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization," he said.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said technology that will shape the future of humanity must be shaped by all humanity, and cannot be governed by only a handful of countries or companies.

While AI can accelerate medical breakthroughs, transform education, strengthen food systems and create new industries and jobs, Guterres warned that computing power, data resources and technical expertise remain concentrated, with developing countries receiving only a trickle of AI investment.

He said China has an essential role to play in making AI a force for greater inclusion and shared progress.

The four-day conference, which runs through Monday under the theme "AI Partnership for a Brighter Future", is one of the world's leading annual AI events.

This year, it has drawn government officials and representatives from industry, academia and research institutions, with participants representing more than 100 countries and international organizations.

A chair's statement issued on Friday called for stronger international cooperation to address major challenges in the AI era and greater prominence for AI capacity building in global governance.

It also urged action to tackle unequal access to resources and power, so that Global South countries can share fairly in the benefits of AI and contribute to achieving the goals of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.