Special Representative of ICC Attends 2026 WAIC & High-Level Meeting On Global AI Governance

The Opening Ceremony of the 2026 WAIC & High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance

On 16 July 2026, President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan hosted a banquet at the Shanghai World Reception Hall to welcome international dignitaries who had come to China to attend the Opening Ceremony of the 2026 World AI Conference (WAIC) & High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance. On 17 July, President Xi Jinping attended the Opening Ceremony of the aforesaid Conference and High-Level Meeting and delivered a keynote address. President Xi posed for a group photo with heads of state, heads of government and heads of international organizations in attendance, before delivering a keynote speech entitled Joining Hands to Build a Just and Equitable System for Global AI Governance. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, Prime Minister Hun Manet of Cambodia, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul of Thailand, and UN Secretary-General António Guterres took the floor in succession. A signing ceremony for the Agreement on the Establishment of the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) was held on site, and the 2026 Chair’s Statement of the World AI Conference was released concurrently during the Conference. Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Wang Yi and other leading officials of the Central Authorities, together with Chen Jining, Secretary of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, attended the series of events, with Chen presiding over the Opening Ceremony.

Main Forum of WAIC 2026 and the High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance

From 16 to 17 July 2026, Zhang Yu, Convener of the Joint Meeting and Director of the Steering Committee of the International Cooperation Center (ICC), attended the 2026 WAIC & High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance upon invitation, and held separate meetings and exchanges with senior international dignitaries present at the Conference. At the invitation of the China Meteorological Administration, Zhang Yu also participated in the Special Session on Meteorology of the 2026 WAIC. As a comprehensive think tank for international studies and a key platform for China’s external exchanges and international cooperation, the ICC is a long-term strategic partner of the United Nations System in China. In recent years, the Center has successfully hosted a series of major events, including the Preparatory Meeting for the UN Summit of the Future, the Preparatory Seminar for the 30th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the International Dialogue on Transformation and the Future of Global Governance Marking the 80th Anniversary of the Founding of the United Nations, and the Symposium on the Evolution and Possibilities of the Global Landscape. These events expounded on grasping the general trends of the world and major shifts in the international situation from diverse perspectives. Leveraging its strengths in forward-looking research and extensive experience in crisis response, the ICC closely follows the profound impact artificial intelligence exerts on the existing global governance architecture and relations of production.

Special Meteorology Session of WAIC 2026

As introduced, the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), approved by the State Council, is co-hosted by ten authorities: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the Cyberspace Affairs Commission, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the China Association for Science and Technology, and the People’s Government of Shanghai Municipality. The 2026 WAIC & High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance, the 9th edition of WAIC, is an international event dedicated to artificial intelligence held in Shanghai from 17 to 20 July 2026 under the theme Intelligent Partners, Co-Creating the Future. On 16 July, the signing ceremony of the Agreement on the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization, a multilateral cooperative institution (intergovernmental organization) proposed by the Government of the People’s Republic of China, was held in Shanghai. Wang Yi, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, attended the ceremony and signed the Agreement on behalf of the Chinese Government. Representatives from 29 countries including Kazakhstan, Laos, Pakistan, Russia and Indonesia affixed their signatures to the Agreement, becoming its founding member states. António Guterres, UN Secretary-General, together with representatives from other countries and international organizations, witnessed the ceremony.

Leading officials from the ICC’s Secretariat, Steering Committee, International Relations Center, and Department of International Organizations and Multilateral Mechanisms attended multiple concurrent forums of the Conference, including the Main Forum of the 2026 WAIC & High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance and the Special Session on Meteorology of the 2026 WAIC.