Trump and China Reject AI Slowdown Calls

9/15/2026

AI policy clash highlights U.S.-China resistance to slowing frontier development See why Trump and Beijing reject a pause—and what it means for AI rules

U.S. President Donald Trump and China’s government both pushed back against calls to slow frontier AI development, according to a Sept. 15, 2026 newsletter summary. Trump called concerns about AI “a hoax,” while Chinese officials dismissed the proposal as fearmongering. The article says the pushback came in response to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s appeal for a pause on advanced AI progress, a position also backed by Sam Altman and Elon Musk. Trump argued that strong leadership, not new restrictions, is the main safeguard, while Beijing focused on the proposal’s suggestion to limit China’s access to top AI chips. The newsletter frames the clash as a sign of the difficulty of coordinating AI policy between the U.S. and China. It notes that both governments appear far apart from the kind of joint agreement that would be needed for any meaningful slowdown.