Chinese President Xi Jinping will deliver the keynote speech at the opening of the 2026 World AI Conference in Shanghai today, July 17. His appearance marks the first time he has attended the annual event since it launched in 2018, a signal of China’s rising focus on artificial intelligence as competition with the United States intensifies.

The three-day conference runs July 17-20 and will feature 140 forums, 1,400 guests, and 1,100 exhibitors. More than 300 new AI products are expected to debut.

Why Xi’s Presence Matters

Xi has been notably absent from China’s flagship AI summit until now. His decision to attend and speak signals that Beijing views AI as a strategic priority on par with semiconductors, renewable energy, and other critical technologies.

China sees AI as central to its economic growth and technological independence. The US dominance in frontier AI models has prompted Chinese policymakers to accelerate domestic development. This conference is a platform for China to showcase its progress and compete globally.

What China Is Building

China has made substantial AI progress. Alibaba’s Qwen, Baidu’s Ernie, and other models are competitive with Western offerings. Chinese visual AI tools lead globally in some domains. The government has poured resources into chips, data centers, and research.

What’s unclear is whether China can match frontier capabilities consistently. The US maintains leads in reasoning, coding, and long-context understanding. But the gap narrows. China’s presence at this conference is partly about demonstrating progress and partly about accelerating it.

Xi’s opening speech today sets the tone for China’s AI ambitions. The three-day conference showcases what Chinese companies have built and hints at what comes next.