\nBill Gates meets with President Xi Jinping in Beijing<\/br>
\n2023-06-17 21:56:59<\/br><\/p>\n
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\n\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nHot on the heels of Elon Musk\u2019s visit to China<\/a> earlier this month, the country welcomed another American tech billionaire. Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, met President Xi Jinping on Friday in Beijing, China\u2019s state media reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n Like Musk, this is Gates\u2019 first trip to China since the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted his frequent visits to the country where Microsoft has had a presence for two decades<\/a>.<\/p>\n The goal of the meeting hasn\u2019t been announced publicly, but official media reports will likely follow. A reporter from China\u2019s English state tabloid Global Times tweeted what seemed to be quotes from the meeting, giving us an early glimpse into the mood of the conversation.<\/p>\n Gates previously said<\/a> he\u2019d be meeting partners working on global health and development challenges. These are the few remaining areas where China and the West find common ground amid rising geopolitical tensions.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are the first American friend I\u2019ve met in Beijing this year,\u201d President Xi told Gates on Friday. \u201cAs the world is emerging from Covid, people should move around more, communicate more, and enhance their understanding of each other.\u201d<\/p>\n President Xi also told Gates that China is willing to engage in \u201cextensive technological innovation cooperation with countries around the world\u201d and \u201cactively participate in and promote the response to global challenges, such as climate change and public health,\u201d according to the reporter.<\/p>\n Gates is visiting China at a curious time. Last week, the Financial Times reported<\/a> that Beijing-based Microsoft Research Asia (MSRA), the tech giant\u2019s largest R&D outfit outside the U.S., is moving some of its top AI talents from China to Vancouver to mitigate the impact of the increasingly strained relationship between China and the U.S.<\/p>\n The Biden Administration is weighing restrictions on investments<\/a> from the U.S. into Chinese cutting-edge technologies, including AI, semiconductors and quantum computing.<\/p>\n MSRA, which started in 1998, has played a pivotal role in training China\u2019s AI talent, many of whom have gone on to found their own ventures. That includes autonomous driving upstart Momenta<\/a>, which has attracted funding from Bosch, General Motors and Toyota.<\/p>\n It won\u2019t be a surprise if Gates is eschewing the touchy topic of the U.S.-China tech war and focuses on philanthropic endeavors on the trip.<\/p>\n