Xi Courts Global South With China-Led AI Diplomacy

China is combining open-source, lower-cost AI models with diplomacy as U.S.-led controls restrict its access to advanced chips and technology. Since Xi Jinping unveiled the Global AI Governance Initiative in October 2023, Beijing has argued that developing nations deserve equal access to AI and a greater voice in setting global rules. The strategy seeks to cast China as a technology partner to the Global South while building influence around an alternative to the U.S.-led order.

On July 17, 2026, Xi made his first appearance at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai and pledged deeper cooperation with ASEAN, the African Union, the League of Arab States and BRICS. An agreement signed by 29 countries laid the groundwork for the Shanghai-based World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization. China also promised 5,000 AI training and seminar opportunities for developing countries over five years and access for 30 nations to a Chinese AI-powered weather early-warning tool.