Vice President JD Vance has joined world leaders in France this week at a high-stakes AI summit for his first foreign trip.
Vance, 40, is expected to push back on European efforts to tighten AI oversight and advocate for a more open, innovative-driven approach.
Video showed him arriving in Paris with his wife and three children before heading to Germany for the Munich Security Conference where he might meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The AI summit has drawn world leaders, top tech executives and policymakers to discuss artificial intelligence’s impact on global security, economics and governance. High-profile attendees include Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, signaling Beijing’s deep interest in shaping global AI standards.
The summit underscores a three-way race for AI supremacy: Europe striving to regulate and invest; China expanding access through state-backed tech giants; and the U.S. under President Donald Trump prioritizing a hands-off approach.
Vance is expected to meet separately Tuesday with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron, a source familiar with the plans told The Associated Press.
The visit by Vance comes at a time when lawmakers are pushing to ban China’s AI app DeepSeek over concerns it could be used to provide information to China’s government.
Preventing China from accessing user data has been at the center of the debate over whether to ban TikTok and has fueled warnings from intelligence and law enforcement officials about being a threat to national security.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun expressed opposition to the ban Monday.
“We oppose drawing ideological lines and oppose overstretching national security concepts and politicizing economic and trade issues,” Guo said. He said that China advocates for open-source AI technology and promotes the accessibility of AI services to share the benefits of artificial intelligence with all countries.
Editor’s note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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