And his speech left no doubt that he has decided to take a leading role in the development of AI. Surprisingly, Xi began his speech by giving credit to the foreign sources that initiated the study and development of AI. While lauding the potential of AI, Xi did not shy away from the reality that much is still unknown about AI’s capabilities:We human beings must answer the questions posed by our times: How to get along with thinking machines? “China lays great emphasis on safety and security in AI development,” he said. Xi is also pushing to have the world agree on rules and regulations for AI – and, implicitly, China would leader those efforts.