
X Marks the Spot
Elon Musk’s new messaging app was built with Chinese users in mind. It was censored before it ever reached them, with related news coverage from state media also pulled down.
The Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Forum (中国—上海合作组织人工智能合作论坛) of the 2025 China-Shanghai Cooperation Organization (上海合作組織) convened in Tianjin on May 29, 2025, under the theme “Intelligence Converges in China, Wisdom Benefits SCO” (智汇中国,慧聚上合). Co-hosted by China’s National Development and Reform Commission (国家发展和改革委员会), or NDRC, a ministerial-level department that coordinates the development policies of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee, and the Tianjin Municipal People’s Government, the forum brought together ministerial-level representatives from SCO member states, UNESCO, and industry and academic experts to discuss AI governance, technology breakthroughs, and application scenarios. Its key outcome was the release of the “China-SCO AI Application Cooperation Center Proposal” (中国—上海合作组织人工智能应用合作中心方案), calling for a joint platform to support talent development, industrial partnerships, and open-source AI cooperation across the region. While the proposal was loudly proclaimed through Chinese state media, a full-text version of the document remained unavailable as of March 2026.
