US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is set to discuss artificial intelligence, rare earths, trade and broader economic issues with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York this weekend.
Reuters citing a source familiar with the plans reported that the talks come ahead of a September 24 meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington. Bessent, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and He are scheduled to meet on Sunday, according to a statement from Greer's office.
The discussions could continue into Monday at a technical or working level, with the agenda expected to remain flexible, Reuters reported.
AI is expected to be a key focus of the discussions. Bessent said he expects the talks to cover both "open- and closed-weight models."
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Open-weight AI models make core elements of the technology publicly accessible, allowing users to download and fine-tune them. Chinese open-weight models have gained traction among US companies, partly because they can be cheaper than closed-weight systems developed by firms such as OpenAI and Anthropic.
Chinese AI models have also been used by the US government. Reuters reported that a US government website had employed an AI model from Chinese technology company Alibaba to help users search proposed federal regulations.
Bessent said the US remains the leader in AI and that Washington is open to discussions aimed at managing shared risks and avoiding a split between the two countries' AI ecosystems.
He has also called for US-China AI guardrails to prevent powerful models from reaching malicious non-state actors.
The talks are also expected to cover the flow of Chinese rare-earth magnets and critical minerals, which are crucial for manufacturing and technology.
China had sharply restricted supplies of some critical minerals as trade tensions and tariffs between Washington and Beijing escalated. Under the current US-China tariff truce, Beijing committed to restoring supplies to US and global users.
However, a senior US official told reporters on Friday that China's implementation of the commitment had not been up to par and would be discussed ahead of the Trump-Xi summit, according to Reuters.
The two sides are also expected to discuss a possible extension of the tariff truce, which is due to expire on November 10.
Washington is additionally seeking stronger Chinese action against the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals into the US, the Reuters report said.
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The US-China discussions come as both sides seek to keep trade tensions from escalating again.
At a Trump-Xi meeting in May, China pledged to increase purchases of US agricultural products and at least 200 Boeing aircraft. Details of those transactions have yet to emerge.
China's Commerce Ministry said on Saturday that He will also lead a delegation of Chinese companies to the US for economic and trade consultations ahead of the Trump-Xi summit. The delegation mirrors a group of US business leaders Trump brought to Beijing in May.
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