Trump and Xi may discuss AI, but it's not like nuclear arms control, a China tech policy analyst says

Artificial intelligence is expected to feature prominently when President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet in Washington this week.

Alex Wong/Getty Images President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are expected to discuss AI at this week in Washington.

A China technology policy analyst says AI isn't like nuclear weapons.

AI's rapid evolution makes US-China limits on development unlikely.

President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are expected to discuss artificial intelligence when they meet in Washington this week, as Washington and Beijing explore ways to manage the technology's national security risks despite their broader rivalry.

But one China technology policy analyst says the comparison many draw with nuclear arms control has its limits.

"AI isn't like nuclear weapons, and where we are with AI is also not like nuclear weapons," said Antonia Hmaidi, the head of the science, technology, and innovation program at the Mercator Institute for China Studies, at a media briefing on Friday.

"With nuclear weapons, it is relatively simple to verify, at least broad claims that the other side makes.

It's very, very difficult to hide huge numbers of nuclear weapons somewhere.

With AI, this is not the case," she said.

AI is expected to be one of the biggest agenda items when Trump and Xi meet at the White House on Thursday, alongside trade and export controls.

On Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US had proposed a new US-China AI dialogue and a notification mechanism for AI-related incidents that rise to the level of national security.

Trump and Xi's meeting also comes as the debate over AI safety has intensified.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently called for AI companies to slow the pace of frontier AI development.