Illustration: Chen Xia/GT

While some countries remain ensnared in the myth of technological hegemony, attempting to preserve their advantages through blockades and exclusive rules, China is actively fostering efforts to bridge the digital divide with an open and cooperative approach, injecting certainty into global artificial intelligence (AI) governance.

The 2025 World AI Conference & High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance is set to be held in Shanghai from July 26-28, centered around the theme of "Global Solidarity in the AI Era."

At a pivotal moment in humanity's technological evolution, this theme again underscores the urgency of addressing global challenges with global solutions.

As the core driver of the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, AI is profoundly reshaping the global development landscape. While the technology creates enormous development opportunities, it also brings global challenges such as ethical norms, security governance, and the digital divide, prompting the international community to pay unprecedented attention to AI governance issues.

China has consistently adopted an open and cooperative approach to AI governance, with an emphasis on inclusivity and shared progress.

Since unveiling the Global AI Governance Initiative in October 2023, China has advocated that countries put equal emphasis on development and security, build consensus through dialogue and cooperation, and develop open, fair, and efficient governing mechanisms, in a bid to promote AI technologies to benefit humanity and contribute to building a community with a shared future for mankind.

In September 2024, China introduced the AI Capacity-Building Action Plan for Good and for All, which established an international cooperation framework aimed at enhancing AI capabilities. This plan outlined key areas for collaboration, including infrastructure development, industrial empowerment, talent training, data management, and security governance. 

Institutions such as the China-BRICS AI Development and Cooperation Center and the China-ASEAN AI Innovation Cooperation Center have been successively established. China has carried out technological research and innovation cooperation with countries like Vietnam and Laos. Chinese enterprises have launched the Digital Egypt Builders program in cooperation with the Egyptian government, assisted the United Arab Emirates in building smart cities, and helped Saudi enterprises improve operational efficiency. The list of such cooperative efforts continues to grow.

However, in sharp contrast to China's concept of open cooperation, the AI strategy of the US reveals hegemonic thinking. For instance, Washington on Wednesday unveiled its AI action plan, a package of initiatives and policy recommendations meant to cement the US as a global leader, according to CNN. Specifically, the plan proposed to restrict exports of American AI equipment and limit the spread of Chinese AI models, according to the South China Morning Post. It is essentially another attempt to maintain hegemonic advantages through technological control, as its pursuit of the strategic goal of restricting China's AI advancement and staying ahead of China in AI has remained unchanged. 

Such tactics, relying on export controls, supply chain restrictions, and technological blockades to maintain US technological advantages over China, actually reflect a zero-sum mentality that treats technology as a weapon rather than a public good. Such a move not only goes against the trend of global scientific and technological cooperation but also fails to support the prosperity and sustainable development of the global AI ecosystem.

The future of AI should never become a tool for a few countries to maintain their hegemony. In our increasingly globalized world, any notion of monopolizing development rights through technological advantages contradicts the prevailing trends of our time. When AI is wielded as a weapon in geopolitical games or used as a bargaining chip for hegemonic expansion, it strays from the path of global development and will eventually lose the momentum for sustainable development in isolation and confrontation. 

This is particularly relevant as the development logic of AI undergoes a profound transformation, shifting from a one-dimensional technological competition to a multi-dimensional co-construction of application ecosystems. The rapid popularization and cross-scenario application of large models have clearly demonstrated that no single country can ensure the prosperity and sustainable development of the global AI ecosystem solely through its own technological prowess. 

Therefore, as the 2025 World AI Conference convenes, to unlock the full potential of AI, it is essential to dismantle barriers and foster transnational cooperation in areas such as data mutual trust, standards compatibility, ethical alignment, and cross-border applications.