Washington last year launched the Pax Silica initiative aimed at securing supply chains for AI models, semiconductors and critical minerals, amid a fierce technology rivalry with Beijing.
Jinping launches World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization
Chinese President Xi Jinping launched a rival "World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization" in July, promoting open-weight technology to challenge US influence. This initiative runs parallel to the US-led Pax Silica framework, and countries like Kazakhstan that have joined both are now being pressured by the US to choose a definitive allegiance.
China wielding critical mineral supply against Trump tariffs
China has leveraged its near-monopoly on critical minerals as a retaliatory measure in a tariff dispute initiated by former US President Donald Trump. The Pax Silica agreement offers members shared investment opportunities in AI projects. The US State Department is clarifying that membership in Pax Silica implies a commitment incompatible with joining rival initiatives designed by China to advance a competing AI vision, effectively forcing partners to pick sides.
