Chinese President Xi Jinping to Visit Washington in September, Trump Says

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit the United States on Sept. 24, with artificial intelligence likely to take center stage in their discussions.

Speaking from the Environmental Protection Agency, Trump framed the visit in sweeping terms, calling AI "probably the biggest thing anybody's ever seen" and arguing that technological dominance over China will define the century.

"Whoever wins that race is probably going to win, period," Trump said.

The president said he and Xi had already discussed the visit during his earlier trip to Beijing, where he extended the invitation to the White House. "President Xi is coming over on September 24th," Trump told reporters. "We talked about it when I was over in Beijing, and we'll be talking about it again."

The announcement came as Trump highlighted his administration's efforts to accelerate the construction of AI data centers, a push that has become a signature economic and security priority of his second term.

Diplomatic groundwork for the summit appeared to be well underway. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday, describing the conversations as preparation for what Rubio called a "very positive visit," according to Reuters.

The September meeting will be the highest-profile in-person engagement between the two leaders since Trump's Beijing trip earlier this year. That visit was dominated by tensions over Taiwan and ongoing trade disputes, and those issues are expected to resurface alongside AI when the two presidents sit down in Washington.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The stakes surrounding AI competition between the two countries have escalated sharply in recent months. China has poured resources into developing military applications for artificial intelligence, a trend that has drawn warnings from defense officials and lawmakers in Washington that the United States risks falling behind in a technology that could reshape the global balance of power.

The Sept. 24 meeting gives Trump and Xi a chance to address not only the competitive dimensions of AI but also the potential for cooperation on issues such as safety standards, export controls and the responsible development of emerging technologies.