The meeting organized by Donald Trump in honor of Chinese President Xi Jinping went beyond an ordinary diplomatic ceremony.
The dinner, held at the White House, brought together some of the most important figures in American technology and finance, at a time when the rivalry between the United States and China over artificial intelligence, advanced chips and technological supremacy is taking on increasing strategic importance.
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Among the guests were Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, AMD’s Lisa Su, Apple’s Tim Cook, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Google’s Sundar Pichai, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. Financial and industrial leaders such as JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon, BlackRock’s Larry Fink, Goldman Sachs’ David Solomon and Citigroup’s Jane Fraser were also seated at the table.
This lineup gave the evening an importance that went beyond diplomatic protocol. Facing one another were the leaders of companies driving the development of artificial intelligence and the presidents of the world’s two largest economies, as Washington and Beijing compete over the technologies expected to shape the economy of the coming decades.
The meeting between Trump and Xi also brought an extension of the US–China trade truce until January. According to Reuters, this gives the parties more time to continue negotiations over tariffs, Chinese purchases, the supply of rare minerals and technological restrictions.
Despite this extension, the main issues of disagreement have not been resolved. For American and Chinese companies, tariffs and trade restrictions remain directly linked to political developments between the two capitals.
During the talks, Xi Jinping also raised the issue of Taiwan and called on the United States to handle it with caution.
The Chinese president also referred to the “Thucydides Trap,” a concept that refers to the risk of conflict when a rising power challenges a dominant one. Xi said the two countries have shared interests and that confrontation can be prevented through dialogue and mechanisms that avoid an escalation of crises.
Reuters listed this among the summit’s key messages, linking it to tensions that remain present even though the visit was accompanied by ceremonial tones.
Behind the festive atmosphere of the dinner was one of the most important fronts of US–China competition: artificial intelligence.
Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and AMD’s Lisa Su lead companies that supply a significant portion of the chip infrastructure for AI. At the same time, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Google’s Sundar Pichai and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg are among the leading names in the development of new artificial intelligence models and platforms.
Xi Jinping stressed that the development of AI must remain under human control. He also said that the United States and China could exchange views on the benefits and risks brought by the technology.
Arabella Kushner, the 15-year-old daughter of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, also attended the dinner. She sat beside her mother and other members of the US president’s family, in a prominent position during the evening.
Arabella is known for her connection to Chinese culture and language, having learned Mandarin from a young age. During Trump’s visit to Beijing in 2017, the US president showed Xi Jinping a video of her in which Arabella, then a child, sang and recited poetry in Mandarin. Xi congratulated her on her Chinese-language skills.
The menu was overseen by First Lady Melania Trump, while the dishes and drinks combined American elements with influences from Chinese cuisine.
The evening began with Schramsberg’s American “Blanc De Noir” sparkling wine. The choice was linked to the “Toast to Peace” made in 1972 by US President Richard Nixon and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. According to the White House, this wine continues to be served at official events.
The menu included pumpkin and wild mushroom soup, sesame sea bass and Asian-inspired accompaniments. For dessert, vanilla crème brûlée, cherry compote and White House honey ice cream were served.
The dinner brought diplomacy, politics and the American business world together in the same room, as the leaders of the largest technology and finance companies sat across from one of the United States’ main strategic rivals.
Trade, Taiwan, technology, chips and the race for artificial intelligence were at the center of the meeting—issues that continue to shape relations between Washington and Beijing.
