China just left its own tech bosses at home for Xi Jinping's trip

Donald Trump just hosted Xi Jinping at the White House.

Eleven of America's biggest tech bosses showed up to watch. China left its own at home.

So here's what happened. The two leaders sat down for bilateral talks this afternoon. About three hours long. Then a state dinner tonight, in the East Room.

Xi Jinping landed in Washington two days ago with his wife, Peng Liyuan. Donald Trump and Melania Trump met them personally on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews. That hasn't happened for a visiting leader in over a decade.

And it came with a show. A military band played. Cannons fired. A B-1 bomber flew overhead at the arrival. Then this morning, a separate White House ceremony added another bomber flyover and nearly 500 troops.

This is Xi Jinping's first state visit to the US in more than a decade.

So who was actually in the room?

Elon Musk. Sam Altman. Jeff Bezos. Sundar Pichai. Tim Cook. Jensen Huang. Mark Zuckerberg. Satya Nadella. Cristiano Amon. Greg Brockman. Jane Fraser. Michael Dell.

That's Tesla, SpaceX, OpenAI, Amazon, Alphabet, Apple, Nvidia, Meta, Microsoft, Qualcomm and Dell. All at one dinner.

China didn't send anything close.

The Chinese business delegation that was meant to travel with Xi Jinping never showed up. A small group of Chinese executives with US visas flew to Washington on their own, separate from Xi's official party. As of this morning, they still didn't know if they'd get into the dinner at all.

These executives didn't fly with Xi's aircraft. Compare that to May, when around 18 American CEOs — including Elon Musk, Jensen Huang and Tim Cook — flew to Beijing with Donald Trump on his own plane.

So what happened to the Chinese CEOs? Unresolved investment disagreements are one reason given. American concerns about Chinese firms with alleged military links are another. China's foreign ministry says it has nothing to add on the matter.

AI was front and centre.

Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that AI would be a big topic today. He said he wants to leave America's position on it exactly where it is, and that China's position is the same. The US Treasury believes the two countries are discussing a system where each side warns the other about AI incidents that threaten national security. China hasn't publicly agreed to it.

Xi Jinping says quote "the development of AI is always under human control and serves the well-being of the people."

That's Xi Jinping talking about managing AI together.

But the guest list said something else. Eleven American tech leaders in the room. No matching Chinese group in sight.

And there's a warning sitting behind all this. Dario Amodei, the boss of Anthropic, recently published an essay calling for the whole AI industry to slow down. Sam Altman and Elon Musk backed him. China's government called it unfair fearmongering, aimed at holding back Chinese competitors.

Then there's trade.

Two days ago, the US and China agreed to extend their trade truce. It was first struck in Busan, South Korea, last October. It was due to expire on 10 November. Now it runs to 10 January 2027.

Beijing hadn't officially confirmed that extension as of this morning. Donald Trump says the two countries have been working on what he calls a more balanced trading relationship.

This is the third time Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have met in under a year. Busan last October. Beijing in May. Now this.

One China analyst believes the short truce extension suggests both sides are planning something bigger, and called the whole visit unprecedented — no two top leaders had visited each other twice within a single year before this.

Most expect less than the spectacle suggests. Big optics. Small commitments.

And then there's Iran.

China is Iran's biggest oil buyer. America has been running a naval blockade on Iranian ports for months, which has cut around 12% of China's oil imports. Washington wants Beijing to use its leverage over Tehran.

Chinese state media reported that Xi Jinping told Donald Trump he hopes the US and Iran will resume negotiations, and that China would support both sides recommitting to an earlier 14-point memorandum. Donald Trump has said he doesn't need China's help on Iran.

On Taiwan, Chinese state media reported Xi Jinping said he hopes the US keeps opposing Taiwan independence. A $14bn Taiwan arms package, already approved by Congress this year, is still on hold. The Trump administration hasn't moved it forward.

So what don't we know yet?

Whether any Chinese CEOs actually got into the dinner. Whether any AI safety commitment was signed, or just talked about. Whether Donald Trump directly asked Xi Jinping to lean on Iran.

Tomorrow brings a private tea between the two couples, then a tour of the National Archives before Xi Jinping flies home.

The bombers and the banquet are already done. What either side actually agreed to is still not public.