Key Takeaways
Twenty-nine countries signed the founding agreement for the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) in Shanghai on July 16, creating a China-backed intergovernmental AI governance body with no major Western democracy among its founders.
Chinese President Xi Jinping addressed the World AI Conference for the first time on July 17, pledging 5,000 AI training opportunities for developing countries over five years and access to China's MAZU weather warning system for 30 countries.
The world now has two competing frameworks for AI governance, one anchored in the G7 and the EU, and one being assembled in Shanghai for the Global South.
The 2026 World AI Conference opened in Shanghai on July 17 with a development that redraws the map of AI governance. One day earlier, 29 countries signed the founding agreement for the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization, an intergovernmental body that will be headquartered in Shanghai. Foreign Minister Wang Yi signed for China, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres attended the ceremony. Founding members include Russia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Laos and Indonesia. No G7 country signed.
Xi Jinping then delivered his first keynote in the conference's nine-year history, saying AI development should be "a symphony of international cooperation" rather than a solo performance by one country. He pledged that China will give developing countries 5,000 AI training and seminar opportunities over the next five years, build AI cooperation centers with ASEAN, the African Union, BRICS and three other blocs, and let 30 countries use MAZU, its AI-powered meteorological warning system. He also warned against overstretching national security concepts in AI, a clear reference to US chip export controls.
The stakes are practical. Countries that align with WAICO will write AI rules that do not need to be compatible with the EU AI Act or the G7's Hiroshima Process, and French officials have already argued the body could normalize authoritarian governance models. The timing compounds a big week for Chinese AI. Moonshot released Kimi K3, the largest open-weight model ever, one day before the conference opened, and China's AI companion law took effect two days before that. The conference runs through July 20 with more than 1,100 companies across a record 100,000 square meters. Worth watching.
People Also Ask
What is the World AI Cooperation Organization (WAICO)?
WAICO is an intergovernmental organization founded by 29 countries in Shanghai on July 16, 2026 to coordinate AI development and governance. It is headquartered in Shanghai and grew out of a proposal China made at the 2025 World AI Conference.
Which countries signed the WAICO founding agreement?
Xinhua named Russia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Laos and Indonesia among the 29 founding members, alongside countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America. No G7 member or major Western democracy signed.
What did Xi Jinping pledge at WAIC 2026?
Xi pledged 5,000 AI training and seminar opportunities for developing countries over five years, AI cooperation centers with ASEAN, the Arab League, the African Union, CELAC, the SCO and BRICS, and access to the MAZU weather warning system for 30 countries.
Why does WAICO matter for global AI regulation?
It creates a second institutional home for AI governance alongside Western frameworks like the EU AI Act and the G7 Hiroshima Process, which means companies operating globally may face two separate and incompatible sets of AI rules.