​​In July 2025, the U.S. and China released national AI strategies with global aims: the U.S. ties AI exports to political alignment, while China promotes open cooperation with fewer conditions. These contrasting approaches reflect broader political differences and may give China an edge in global AI influence.

While no one has waved an official checkered flag in the Sino-American race for AI supremacy, the markets are betting that the United States will prevail. The chipmaker Nvidia recently became the world’s first $4 trillion company (and its CEO, Jensen Huang, has acquired global rock-star status). Microsoft, the biggest investor in OpenAI’s for-profit entity, is not far behind, with a valuation of $3.7 trillion.

By equating artificial intelligence data flows with national security risks, the United States has effectively designated China as a presumptive problem. This has not only soured the atmosphere for bilateral AI cooperation but also promises to cast a long shadow over global AI collaboration.

Data security governance has become a global priority amid rising competition over data resources, with the U.S., EU, and China adopting distinct models: the U.S. favors a market-driven, security-conscious approach with public-private cooperation; the EU relies on strict regulatory frameworks like the GDPR; and China enforces centralized, party-led oversight. Despite their differences, all three aim to strengthen data security within their respective systems.

The United States is moving aggressively to solidify its technological dominance. This has become the core logic behind its efforts to reshape the global order. But the best approach for the world is to develop a model of cooperation rooted in mutual benefits and shared gains.

AI governance is a shared global challenge, and China and the U.S., as major AI powers, face new risks and challenges with Trump's return to the White House, making cooperation neither wholly pessimistic nor optimistic. A transactional "strategic stability dialogue" should be established to build trust, manage competition, rather than direct rivalry, and ensure transparency and rationality in AI governance despite rising tensions.

U.S. restrictions aimed at obstructing China’s technological development have, in practice, accelerated China’s pursuit of technological self-reliance.

China-U.S. competition in the realm of artificial intelligence boils down to development ability. The advantages of the United States are no longer secure. What matters is who will lead sustainably in the future.

China’s new export licensing system strengthens its control over key rare earth elements, deepening supply chain risks. Although new processing facilities are emerging abroad, they won’t soon offset China’s dominance, prolonging global uncertainty.

Yes, they can. As the world’s two major powers in AI technology, the U.S. and China must work together to build capacity, contribute to AI for developing countries, bridge the digital divide and help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.