World
Xi Jinping’s US visit: What Trump will discuss and list of top CEOs who would attend state dinner
Xi Jinping’s Washington visit combines high-stakes Trump talks on trade, AI and Taiwan with an unusually star-studded White House dinner featuring America’s top technology executives.
FULL ARTICLE · The Indian Express World
4 min readUpdated: Sep 24, 2026 12:18 PM IST
President Donald Trump, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shake hands before their meeting at Gimhae International Airport in Busan, South Korea, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025. (AP file)
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the United States will bring together a powerful collection of technology and business tycoons when President Donald Trump hosts a state dinner at the White House on Thursday, with Elon Musk, Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella, Sam Altman, Tim Cook and Jensen Huang among those expected to attend.
The guest list brings together executives from some of the world’s most influential companies at a moment when artificial intelligence, advanced semiconductors, rare-earth supplies and technology restrictions have become central to US-China competition.
The dinner will be held in the White House’s East Room on September 24, as part of Xi’s first US state visit in more than a decade. Trump is also expected to personally greet Xi when the Chinese leader arrives at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday — an unusual protocol gesture for a visiting foreign leader.
Who is expected at the dinner?
.
Guest List
TECH TITANS EXPECTED
Prominent technology executives attending the event
Sundar Pichai
CEO Alphabet & Google
Satya Nadella
CEO Microsoft
Sam Altman
CEO OpenAI
Elon Musk
CEO Tesla & SpaceX
Jensen Huang
CEO Nvidia
Tim Cook
Exec Chairman Apple
Jeff Bezos
Founder Amazon
Michael Dell
Founder & CEO Dell Tech
Mark Zuckerberg
CEO Meta
Cristiano Amon
CEO Qualcomm
Greg Brockman
President OpenAI
.
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser are also expected to attend, while Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla is also set to be there, news agency Reuters reported.
Why are so many tech CEOs there?
The composition of the dinner is significant because technology has become one of the main fronts in the US-China relationship.
Washington and Beijing are competing over AI, advanced chips and computing infrastructure, while US restrictions on technology exports to China and Chinese controls on rare-earth materials have become important sources of friction.
AI is expected to be discussed during Xi’s visit, alongside trade and the flow of rare-earth materials into global markets.
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Musk is expected to attend alongside executives whose companies have complicated commercial relationships with China.
Tesla operates its largest manufacturing hub in Shanghai, making China an important part of the company’s global production and sales network. Musk has also maintained a high-profile relationship with Trump.
His presence at a dinner for Xi, therefore, comes as Washington and Beijing try to manage tensions over trade and technology while American companies continue to have significant commercial interests in China. Reuters reported that Musk described Xi as a “great leader” in an interview with Chinese state television.
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US-China · Tech War
Why these CEOs matter to Trump–Xi talks
Six companies. One shared exposure. What each CEO has at stake as Washington and Beijing square off on AI, chips and trade.
Who owns whatCompanies caught in the middle
EM
Elon Musk
→
Tesla
EVs
→
Shanghai Gigafactory produces roughly 40% of Tesla’s global output — its largest single plant.
TC
Tim Cook
→
Apple
Hardware
→
Over 90% of iPhones are assembled in China, primarily through Foxconn and Pegatron.
JH
Jensen Huang
→
Nvidia
AI chips
→
US export controls block A100/H100 sales to China, cutting off a market that was roughly 20–25% of revenue.
SP
Sundar Pichai
→
AI / cloud
→
Search is blocked in China. Android supply chain and hardware components are deeply China-tied.
SN
Satya Nadella
→
Microsoft
AI / cloud
→
Azure and LinkedIn operate in China. Microsoft faces pressure to limit AI model exports to Chinese partners.
SA
Sam Altman
→
OpenAI
AI
→
ChatGPT is blocked in China. Baidu’s Ernie and DeepSeek are its direct state-backed rivals.
United States
EM
Elon Musk
Tesla
TC
Tim Cook
Apple
JH
Jensen Huang
Nvidia
SP
Sundar Pichai
SN
Satya Nadella
Microsoft
SA
Sam Altman
OpenAI
Contested
AI
Models & data
CHIPS
Export controls
RAREEARTHS
Supply chain
EVs
Tariffs & plants
TRADE
Active
China
DeepSeek / Ernie
State-backed AI rivals
SMIC & Huawei
Domestic chip push
Lynas / CATL
Minerals & batteries
BYD
EV & manufacturing
Foxconn / TSMC
Assembly & silicon
Trump and Xi meet as US-China technology competition intensifies across AI, semiconductors and clean energy.
Sources: Company filings; US Bureau of Industry and Security (export-control rules); Bloomberg; Reuters. Revenue and manufacturing shares are estimates from public reporting.
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What will Trump and Xi discuss?
The state dinner comes after months of efforts by Washington and Beijing to stabilise their relationship. Among the major issues expected to feature in the discussions are:
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Trade and tariffs: The two countries remain locked in a long-running trade dispute. Their existing tariff truce is due to expire in November, making an extension or further arrangement an important issue.
Rare earths: China’s dominant position in the processing and export of rare-earth materials has given Beijing significant leverage in negotiations with Washington. US officials have said the flow of rare earths to global markets will be discussed.
Artificial intelligence: AI has moved from being primarily a technology issue to a national-security and geopolitical issue. Washington and Beijing are discussing how to manage risks associated with the technology while competing for leadership in the sector.
Taiwan: Taiwan remains one of the most sensitive issues in US-China relations. Beijing regards Taiwan as part of China and has not renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control. Washington remains Taiwan’s major international arms supplier.
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Iran: The two countries’ positions on Iran are another source of tension, particularly as the Trump administration seeks to exert pressure on Tehran.
China’s warning before Xi’s arrival
The dinner comes against a backdrop of explicit warnings from Beijing. Chinese Ambassador to the US Xie Feng said Wednesday that Taiwan, democracy and human rights, China’s development path and system, and China’s development rights were among Beijing’s “red lines” that could not be challenged.
He called for the two sides to manage differences through dialogue and warned that confrontation would hurt both countries.
Chinese state media also criticised what it described as Washington’s continued reliance on the idea of strategic competition with China.
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A lot of ceremony, but limited expectations
The White House says Thursday’s state arrival ceremony will involve 479 military personnel from all branches of the US armed forces, followed by a military review and a flyover featuring a B-2 bomber and four F-22 Raptors.
Trump will also host Xi and Peng for tea on Friday before accompanying them to the National Archives.
(With inputs from agencies)
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