Tariff Truce Expiring Nov. 10 Looms Over US-China AI Safety Talks

Top US and Chinese officials met in New York on Sunday and discussed setting up a system to notify each other about AI incidents that could threaten national security, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters, according to BBC News. The talks came days before President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to hold a summit in Washington this week.

Bessent called the New York meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng "successful." China's state news agency Xinhua described the exchanges as "candid, in-depth and constructive," the BBC reported, and confirmed AI was part of the discussion.

What did the US and China agree to on AI safety?

The two sides discussed creating what Bessent called a "notification mechanism" for AI incidents affecting national security, the BBC reported. No formal agreement was announced. Bessent framed the idea as a step toward transparency between what he called the world's two top AI powers.

"We think that, just like with any cross-border activity, that moving from opaque to more transparency between the number one and the number two AI powers in the world is very important," Bessent told reporters after the meeting, according to the BBC.

Why is this happening right before the Trump-Xi summit?

The New York session was meant to set the stage for this week's summit, where Trump and Xi are expected to build on talks the two leaders held in May, when Xi hosted Trump in Beijing. Those earlier discussions ended with an agreement that China would buy Boeing jets and US farm goods in exchange for lower tariffs, the BBC reported. AI cooperation was also on the table in May.

Bessent posted on X that Sunday's talks "help lay the groundwork for President Trump to advance America's economic interests and deliver results for the American people," according to the BBC.

What's the tariff truce deadline that's also on the table?

Beyond AI, the New York meeting covered plans to "operationalise" a process for identifying possible tariff cuts through a body called the Board of Trade, Bessent said, per the BBC. That work carries added urgency because a truce in the US-China tariff dispute is due to expire on November 10. Neither side has publicly detailed what would happen if no new deal is reached before that date.

The BBC said it contacted the Chinese embassy in the US for comment on the New York talks but did not report a response by publication.

What has Trump said about AI risks?

The AI portion of the talks follows a run of warnings from researchers and industry figures about the technology's potential dangers, the BBC reported. Trump has largely brushed aside those concerns. He has argued existing policies are sufficient and that the US cannot afford to fall behind China in AI development. Earlier this month he said, "whoever wins in AI, wins," according to the BBC.

That stance puts Washington in an odd position heading into talks meant, in part, to build guardrails around the same technology the administration is racing to expand. Bessent's comments suggest the administration sees a notification system as compatible with staying ahead in the AI competition, not a brake on it.

What happens next this week?

The Trump-Xi summit in Washington is expected to take up both threads from the New York meeting: a possible AI notification framework and the tariff truce that lapses November 10. Trade watchers will be looking for whether the two governments turn Sunday's talking points into anything with legal teeth, or whether AI safety and tariff relief simply feed into a broader negotiation the way the Boeing and agriculture deal did in May.

The AI safety discussion also lands against a backdrop of a fast-moving US market for AI tools. HTT News reported this week that the Nasdaq closed at a record Monday, and separate reporting has tracked growth projections for the broader AI productivity tools market. Neither report is directly tied to the US-China talks, but both underscore how much commercial weight now sits behind whatever framework the two governments settle on.

For now, the only confirmed outcome from New York is a conversation, not a signed deal. Whether that conversation turns into a working notification system, and whether the tariff truce gets extended past November 10, will depend on what Trump and Xi agree to when they sit down in Washington later this week.