Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend and deliver the keynote address at the 2026 World AI Conference in Shanghai, marking his first in-person appearance at the event since it launched in 2018, foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian announced on July 13, according to China’s official government news service.
What’s planned
The conference, formally titled the World AI Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance, runs July 17-20 under the theme “Intelligent Partners, Co-create the Future.” According to the South China Morning Post, the four-day event is expected to draw more than 140 forums, 1,400 attendees, and 1,100 exhibitors, with over 300 products making their global debut.
Lin said Xi will “systemically elaborate on China’s policies, position, visions and propositions on AI development and governance,” according to the government announcement. Premier Li Qiang opened the 2024 and 2025 editions on Xi’s behalf; before that, Xi had only sent a congratulatory message to the inaugural 2018 conference.
Why it matters
The elevated presidential attention signals how central artificial intelligence has become to China’s economic strategy. Beijing’s 2026 work report calls for building an “intelligent economy” and expanding its “AI+” initiative to speed commercial adoption across industries, and Xi has previously described AI as entering a period of “explosive development.”
The event also functions as a governance forum: Chinese officials are framing it around the Global AI Governance Initiative and pledges of capacity-building support for developing countries, positioning Beijing as a rule-setter in AI policy alongside its push for technological competitiveness with the United States.