Google released Gemini 3.5 Pro on July 18, 2026, featuring a 2-million-token context window and enhanced reasoning capabilities, the same day Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote at Shanghai’s World AI Conference. Xi pledged 5,000 AI training opportunities for developing nations and criticized U.S. chip export restrictions, calling for AI development to be a matter of international cooperation rather than single-country dominance. The simultaneous announcements underscored escalating US-China competition over AI dominance and governance frameworks.
