US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday that the United States had proposed a shared “notification mechanism” for artificial intelligence incidents that could affect national security. The proposal was discussed during weekend talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York, ahead of planned discussions between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday.
Bessent said greater transparency between the world’s two leading AI powers was important, describing the aim as developing a shared understanding of common goals and threats. The article provides no details on how the proposed system would operate, which incidents would qualify, or whether China had accepted the proposal. Chinese state media Xinhua confirmed that the officials discussed issues relating to AI, but did not mention the notification mechanism specifically.
George Chen of consultancy The Asia Group said the initial outcome could set a precedent for other countries. The talks also covered economic and trade matters, including plans to operationalise a new “Board of Trade” and possible lower tariffs on non-sensitive consumer, agricultural, energy and medical-device products. Trump has opposed calls to slow AI development, arguing that doing so could help China catch up with US companies.