OpenAI calls for a US-led global AI governance body that includes China
Heritage Foundation senior fellow Steve Yates discusses shifting U.S.-China relations, the push for fairer trade and the limits of economic and strategic cooperation with Chinese President Xi Jinping on ‘The Evening Edit.’
A top OpenAI executive said Wednesday the company would support a U.S.-led global AI body that includes China as competition between the two countries intensifies.
Chris Lehane, OpenAI’s vice president of global affairs, told reporters the U.S. could leverage its advancements in AI to help establish a global framework aimed at building safer, more resilient systems, according to Bloomberg.
“AI, in some level, transcends a lot of the prevailing or traditional trade type of issues,” Lehane said. “There is an opportunity to really start to build something up globally, and have countries around the world, including China, potentially participate.”
Lehane said the proposed organization could resemble the International Atomic Energy Agency, which includes China and sets global safety standards for nuclear energy development.
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OpenAI signaled support for a U.S.-led global AI governance body that could include China, an executive said. (Nathan Laine/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
He added that such a framework could be built by linking the U.S. Commerce Department’s Center for AI Standards and Innovation with AI safety institutes being developed around the world.
Lehane said OpenAI has floated the idea of connecting AI safety institutes, though it is unclear whether the Trump administration would support China’s participation in setting global guidelines.
The comments come as President Donald Trump arrived in China ahead of talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Several business leaders joined Trump on the trip, including Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. The chipmaker is the world’s most valuable company, with a market value of about $5.3 trillion.
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U.S. President Donald Trump greets Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of a bilateral meeting at Gimhae Air Base on October 30, 2025 in Busan, South Korea. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The talks are expected to take place against the backdrop of the ongoing war in Iran, as well as continued U.S.-China tensions over tariffs, artificial intelligence and trade.
The two countries could discuss new commitments by China to purchase U.S. agricultural products and jetliners, while restrictions on the sale of advanced AI chips remain a potential sticking point.
Ahead of the visit, former White House AI adviser David Sacks weighed in on the intensifying AI competition between the two countries on “The Claman Countdown.”
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