Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered his first in-person address at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on Friday, calling for open-source AI and cross-border collaboration. Xi emphasized that AI development should be a "symphony of international cooperation" rather than a solo performance by any single country, directly contrasting with the Trump administration's restrictive trade policies. China and the U.S. are locked in a fierce competition for AI dominance, with American labs like OpenAI and Anthropic currently leading, but Chinese companies rapidly closing the gap with open models that outperform some closed American offerings.