Kurt Campbell says US-China AI talks won’t yield binding limits

Former US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell has warned that discussions between Washington and Beijing on AI and security are unlikely to produce binding agreements, pointing to a fundamental trust deficit that no amount of diplomacy has managed to close. Notification, not regulation Rather than pursuing formal restrictions, recent discussions have centered on risk notification mechanisms. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent led discussions in New York on September 20, proposing the creation of a “US-China A.I. dialogue.” The framework would establish a system where each country notifies the other about national security-level AI incidents. It’s transparency-oriented, not regulatory. Notably, the proposal steered clear of export controls on advanced semiconductors. Prior dialogues included 2024 talks in Geneva focused on nuclear command risks, and a communication channel established after the Trump-Xi summit in Beijing in May 2026. Campbell’s core argument is straightforward: neither side trusts the other enough to agree to restrictions they can’t independently verify. Who’s at the table The discussions have drawn participation from major US AI firms including OpenAI and Nvidia,...