Archive · 13 Aug 2026
Chinese buy-in for BRICS: China poised to shape AI governance
Many countries are getting ready for a big meeting in New Delhi, India, called the BRICS Summit.
At this meeting, leaders will talk about smart computer programs called AI.
AI can do amazing things, but it is growing so fast that some people are scared.
Important people like the Pope and the head of the United Nations say AI could cause big problems if there are no rules.
China has started a new club called WAICO to help countries work together on AI rules.
The club is based in Shanghai and has members from countries like Brazil, Russia, Indonesia, and South Africa.
The United States mostly does not want to make world rules for AI yet.
Many countries in the southern part of the world do not have their own AI rules yet.
So China is trying to be the one to help them and make the rules.
In a way, it is a race to see which country gets to set the rules for everyone.
The 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, less than a month away, will feature AI governance prominently.
China last month established the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO), headquartered in Shanghai.
WAICO's founding members include Indonesia, Malaysia, Ethiopia, South Africa, Brazil, Russia, Belarus, Cuba, and Uzbekistan.
China also launched the World Data Organization (WDO) in March, reportedly attracting more than 200 members from nearly 40 countries.
Pope Leo XIV and UN Chief Antonio Guterres have warned of disastrous consequences unless AI expansion is reined in through effective rules.
- Who
- China, BRICS member nations, and leaders including Pope Leo XIV and UN Chief Antonio Guterres, who have warned about AI risks.
- What
- China is positioned to institutionalise its AI governance framework within BRICS, backed by new initiatives such as WAICO and the WDO.
- When
- Less than a month before the 18th BRICS Summit; WAICO was established last month and the WDO was launched in March.
- Where
- New Delhi, India (summit venue); Shanghai, China (WAICO headquarters); across the Global South.
- Why
- The US prefers light-touch global AI and digital rules, and most Global South countries lack domestic AI regulation, leaving a vacuum China is moving to fill.
Backers of China-led AI governance
Critics of China-led AI governance
China's WAICO and WDO initiatives
Backers of China-led AI governance
They offer the Global South an inclusive, non-Western framework for AI and data governance, helping bridge the global digital divide and answering the 'call of the Global South.'
Critics of China-led AI governance
They follow from China's ambition to stay ahead in the global digital race and steal a march over the US and its allies.
Approach to global AI rules
Backers of China-led AI governance
Coordinated global rules are urgent, as Pope Leo XIV and UN Chief Antonio Guterres warn of disastrous consequences from runaway AI growth.
Critics of China-led AI governance
The US prefers a light-touch approach without coordinated global rules to preserve long-term commercial prospects for American big tech worldwide.
- Event
- 18th BRICS Summit, New Delhi
- Timeline
- Less than a month away at time of writing
- Previous BRICS summit
- Rio de Janeiro, July 2025
- WAICO
- Established last month, headquartered in Shanghai
- WAICO founding members
- Indonesia, Malaysia, Ethiopia, South Africa, Brazil, Russia, Belarus, Cuba, Uzbekistan
- WDO membership
- More than 200 members from nearly 40 countries
- China's Five-Year Plan
- 2026-2030, endorsed in March; proposed WAICO
- Source
- Opinion piece in Financial Express by ISAS-NUS researcher