The United States and China have agreed to establish a bilateral communication channel for artificial intelligence incidents, marking a new area of cooperation between the two countries as they compete over the development and control of increasingly advanced AI technologies.
The agreement was announced by the White House on Friday, following a summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington.
According to a White House fact sheet, the two countries will establish a communication channel that can be used when incidents involving advanced artificial intelligence require direct communication between Washington and Beijing. The announcement comes amid growing international concern about the potential risks associated with increasingly capable AI systems.
The two countries also agreed to establish what the White House described as the US-China Super Intelligence (SI) Dialogue, a forum intended to exchange views on the risks and benefits associated with advanced AI.
The next exchange under the dialogue is expected to take place by November, according to the White House.
The terminology itself was also notable. The White House said the two leaders agreed to use the term “Super Intelligence,” or SI, rather than AI when referring to the technology covered by the new dialogue.
The agreement comes after US and Chinese officials had already discussed the possibility of establishing a mechanism for communicating about serious AI-related incidents before the leaders’ summit.
During meetings in New York earlier in September, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said American and Chinese officials had discussed creating a notification mechanism for incidents involving AI that could rise to the level of a national security concern. The discussions were part of preparations for the Trump-Xi summit.
The issue reflects the increasingly complex relationship between the United States and China in the AI sector. Both countries are competing for technological leadership while also facing concerns that highly capable AI systems could create risks that cross national borders.
Speaking at the White House, Xi called on both countries to manage their rivalry while keeping AI development under human control.
“We have both the capability and responsibility to develop and manage AI for good and ensure that the development of AI is always under human control,” Xi said.
Trump had also identified advanced AI as an important subject ahead of the summit, describing “Super Intelligence” as a major topic for discussion.
The new communication channel does not represent an end to the broader technological competition between Washington and Beijing. Instead, it creates a mechanism through which the two governments can communicate when potentially serious AI incidents occur.
The development is particularly significant because AI systems can operate across borders and can affect areas ranging from cybersecurity and critical infrastructure to economic activity and national security. A dedicated channel could provide a way for officials to exchange information and clarify incidents before they develop into wider disputes, although the precise procedures and scope of the mechanism have not yet been fully detailed publicly.
The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace had previously examined the idea of an AI communication channel between Washington and Beijing, noting that such a mechanism would need clear thresholds for triggering communication and technical procedures capable of handling digital evidence and other information associated with AI incidents.
For now, the agreement represents a limited but notable addition to US-China engagement on artificial intelligence. The planned November dialogue is expected to provide an opportunity for both sides to further discuss the risks and benefits of advanced AI and how they can communicate when serious incidents occur.
As competition between the world’s two largest economies continues to extend into artificial intelligence, the new channel could become an important part of efforts to prevent misunderstandings and manage incidents involving increasingly powerful AI systems.
