Donald Trump hosted Xi Jinping at the White House with an elaborate state welcome, including military ceremonies, flyovers and a tour, while Xi announced that two giant pandas would soon arrive at Zoo Atlanta. The display of goodwill contrasted with continuing rivalry between the United States and China, particularly over artificial intelligence and the risk of wider strategic confrontation.

Trump had recently claimed that the US was far ahead in the race for AI and superintelligence, but Xi urged both countries to view competition as a controlled race rather than a contest with winners and losers. He warned against the “Thucydides Trap”, encouraged cooperation on managing AI, and said peaceful coexistence would benefit both nations, while invoking their joint history of fighting fascism during the Second World War.