Overview
- Twenty-nine countries signed an agreement in Shanghai to create the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization, with founding members reported to include China, Russia and several Global South states.
- The pact was signed on Thursday and organizers say the new body will be headquartered in Shanghai and promote the orderly development of AI.
- China opened the World Artificial Intelligence Conference on Friday with President Xi Jinping delivering the keynote and United Nations Secretary‑General António Guterres attending pre-conference activities.
- Organizers displayed roughly 1,100 exhibiting companies and about 3,000 AI products and services at the conference while a Chinese government-affiliated think tank reported the domestic AI industry grew from 900 billion yuan in 2024 to 1.2 trillion yuan in 2025.
- Reports do not detail the new organization's legal structure or wider endorsement from Western countries, leaving questions about how it will interact with existing multilateral AI governance efforts and how that could affect technology standards, trade and users in countries adopting Chinese AI infrastructure.