Marketplace Tech · Thursday, September 24, 2026
Sam Sachs expressed low expectations for a significant agreement from the US-China AI talks, predicting that the meetings will likely involve discussions about future discussions rather than a grand bargain. She believes the most productive outcome would be for technical experts from both sides to establish channels for sharing information on AI safety issues.
“I do not expect a grand bargain on AI for China to come out and say, we are also going to pace the frontier. And frankly, I don't think it needs to happen.”
“So I think what I expect to happen, based on the meeting that happened in New York City with Bessen and Holly Fung, I expect to have meetings to talk about meetings. Let's move Trump and she aside on this topic. They're not going to figure it out. They're not going to agree on a grand bargain.”
“But if they can signal that we endorse our technical experts having a way where they can share information about some of these issues, that will make the world a safer place.”