Government officials and experts from 20 countries gathered in Shanghai on Oct 20 for a workshop on AI capacity building, signaling a concerted effort to strengthen global collaboration and promote the equitable development of artificial intelligence technologies.

The workshop, hosted by East China Normal University, reflects China's commitment to ensuring that AI benefits all nations.

Sun Xiaobo, coordinator for AI Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, emphasized that AI, as a crystallization of human wisdom, should not become a privilege reserved for the wealthy or the powerful.

He outlined three guiding principles for the field: innovation and openness to drive AI progress, fairness and inclusiveness to ensure shared benefits, and collaborative governance with the United Nations at its core.

The workshop seeks to advance the implementation of the United Nations General Assembly resolution on "Enhancing International Cooperation on AI Capacity Building" and the accompanying AI Capacity-Building Action Plan for Good and for All.

International participants noted the workshop's significance in encouraging practical cooperation and recognized China's active role in shaping the global AI landscape.

Dmitry Barovik, professor of mathematics and informatics at Belarusian State University, expressed his enthusiasm for China's open approach to AI. "China is a country and a center that is open for everybody," he said.

Having recently visited several Chinese technology companies and universities, Barovik said he was deeply impressed by China's capabilities.

"What I saw is that every big company in China can build a large language model from scratch. You have enough power, you have enough human capital, mathematics, and knowledge... China will have a great future in AI for sure," he added.

He also valued the diversity of participants, noting that "this corporation will help us to see the problem from different points of view. We will gain a lot of knowledge, a lot of friends for cooperation."​

The six-day program includes visits to robotics centers, universities, and medical institutions that demonstrate AI applications across various sectors, along with cultural activities that encourage the exchange of ideas and expertise.

Ahmed Saleh, director of Innovation and International Digital Affairs at Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, commended China's efficiency in translating policy into action.

"The resolution was adopted on July 1, 2024. And now we are in October 2025, and we have three workshops already. That's remarkably fast," Saleh said. "China is clearly willing to cooperate, and they are acting on it; this is not just talk, they are taking real steps."​​

Reflecting on his previous visit in May, Saleh said his goal for the workshop was "to maximize the opportunities for intensifying and strengthening the cooperation between Egypt and China in the field of AI."

"I found that the advancement China has achieved has gone beyond expectations in all fields of AI, especially in generative AI and frontier AI," he said.