The World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) is an annual conference held in Shanghai that brings together governments, AI companies, research institutions and policymakers to showcase advances in artificial intelligence, explore emerging technologies and discuss the future of global AI governance. Since its launch in 2018, WAIC has grown in scale, combining a major technology exhibition with high-level policy discussions and academic exchange.
Key announcements from WAIC 2026 included
- World AI Cooperation Organisation (WAICO)
- Moonshot AI Kimi K3
- Huawei Atlas 950
- AI training initiative
- AI cooperation centres
The 2026 edition carried added significance as a platform for international AI governance, marked by the founding of the World AI Cooperation Organisation (WAICO), a new intergovernmental AI cooperation body headquartered in Shanghai, established when 29 countries signed its charter on 16 July, a day ahead of the conference's opening keynote. The WAICO launch and Xi Jinping's keynote address were the two biggest drivers of conversation, as the conference generated 204K mentions and 1.74 million engagements, and 1.3B estimated views between 15 and 20 July.
The opening keynote generated the highest share of discussion, though the wider conversation extended to international AI policy, core technologies, robotics and commercial applications. The following breakdown outlines the themes, narratives and channels that shaped the event.
| Metric | Value |
| Mentions analyzed | 204,000 |
| Engagement | 1.74M |
| Estimated reach | 1.3B |
| Largest storyline | Opening keynote |
| Biggest policy announcement | WAICO |
| Dominant market | China (94%) |
| Main technology theme | Core AI infrastructure |
Table of contents
Methodology
The keynote that defined the news cycle
Policy narratives shaped discussion beyond the keynote
Technology and commercial applications dominated the conversation
A conversation concentrated on Chinese platforms
From insight to intelligence: how Meltwater Social Listening Platform helps
Conclusion
FAQ
Methodology
| Capability | Meltwater Social Listening Platform |
| Analysis window | 15-20 July 2026 |
| Data sources | 30 sources, including broadcast television and radio, online and print news, blogs, comments, reviews, forums, podcasts, TikTok, Instagram, Reddit, Facebook, Pinterest, X, Douyin, Red and YouTube |
| Regions | Regional analysis focused on China and four major Western markets to compare domestic and international media coverage of WAIC 2026. |
| Language | English and Chinese |
| Definitions | Mentions (individual pieces of content referencing WAIC 2026 keyphrases); Engagement (likes, shares, comments and reactions summed across tracked platforms); Estimated Views (modelled potential audience reach across broadcast and online sources) |
The keynote that defined the news cycle
The opening keynote was the single largest driver of conversation at WAIC 2026. Keynote-related coverage generated 40.1K mentions, accounting for close to one-fifth of the full total and more than any other individual theme, and drove the conference's busiest day on 17 July with 49.3K mentions and 575K engagements. While the keynote drew a lot of coverage, product and exhibitions, humanoid robots, general AI hype, and product and chip showcases combined accounted for a larger share of overall volume (50.7%).
Conversation built steadily into the conference opening before reaching its peak on 17 July with 49.3K mentions and 575K engagements. Momentum began building a day earlier with the signing of the World AI Cooperation Organisation (WAICO), before the opening keynote and a series of major policy and technology announcements, including China's AI Cooperation and Development Action Plan, Huawei's Atlas 950 SuperPoD AI computing cluster and Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 model, drove the conference's busiest news cycle. Daily conversation remained above pre-conference levels through to 20 July, sustained by continued discussion of the keynote alongside product launches and exhibition activity.
Why it matters: Major technology conferences are increasingly driven by multiple parallel news cycles. While opening-day announcements create the largest spikes in attention, product launches, technology developments and exhibition activity continue to shape the conversation throughout the event. For communications teams, understanding how these storylines interact is just as important as monitoring the headline moments.
Policy narratives shaped discussion beyond the keynote
While the opening keynote generated WAIC's largest spike in attention, its influence extended well beyond the speech itself. Discussion continued around three closely connected policy narratives: responsible AI development, international cooperation and the establishment of new multilateral institutions. Together, these themes positioned policy as a parallel conversation to the conference's technology announcements, accounting for 38.7% of total discussion across the analysis period.
Responsible AI development remained a central theme
Discussion consistently focused on balancing AI innovation with security, openness and inclusiveness. Keyphrases relating to governance challenges (10,028 mentions) and regulation and technology monitoring (9,962 mentions) reflected continued attention on how AI should be developed responsibly alongside rapid technological progress. The keynote framed these principles through openness, risk-awareness, inclusiveness and solidarity, establishing a recurring reference point for subsequent media coverage.
International cooperation became a defining policy narrative
International cooperation emerged as one of WAIC's defining policy narratives, reinforced by both the keynote and a series of practical initiatives announced throughout the conference. President Xi's call for global cooperation around AI became a recurring message across conference coverage. The theme was supported by announcements including 5,000 AI training opportunities for developing countries and new AI cooperation centres targeting ASEAN, the Arab League, the African Union, CELAC, the SCO and BRICS. The prominence of related keyphrases—including ASEAN (13,435 mentions), the African Union (12,490 mentions) and the Arab League (12,013 mentions)—demonstrates that these initiatives became an integral part of the wider conference discussion.
The development of artificial intelligence should not be a solo performance by any one country, but a symphony of global cooperation.
- President Xi Jinping, 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (Source)
The World AI Cooperation Organisation (WAICO) reflected a longer-term institutional ambition
The launch of the World AI Cooperation Organisation (WAICO) generated 15,022 mentions, making it one of the conference's most prominent policy developments. Signed by 29 countries the day before WAIC officially opened, the organisation represented the progression of an initiative first proposed at WAIC 2025 into a formal international institution. Its timing also helped build momentum ahead of the conference, reinforcing WAIC's role as both a technology showcase and a platform for international AI dialogue.
Why it matters: As AI continues to evolve, so too do the policies, governance frameworks and international cooperation shaping its development. Major AI conferences increasingly generate parallel conversations around both technological innovation and the frameworks that enable its adoption.
Technology and commercial applications dominated the conversation
While policy remained a significant part of WAIC, technology and application-related themes collectively accounted for 50.7% of total conversation, making them the dominant focus of the conference. Within this broader discussion, core technologies generated the highest directional volume (104,644 mentions), while commercial applications across transport, manufacturing, healthcare and consumer devices demonstrated how AI is increasingly being discussed through real-world deployment rather than future potential.
Core technologies generated by far the highest volume of discussion (104,644 mentions), reinforcing that the race to build faster chips, more capable models and greater computing infrastructure remains central to AI development. Announcements such as Huawei's Atlas 950 SuperPoD and Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 reflected continued industry focus on the capabilities underpinning next-generation AI.
While core technologies generated the highest directional volume, discussion also spanned a broad range of AI applications, including intelligent driving (17,638 mentions), manufacturing (17,341), smart terminals (17,272), smart healthcare (5,517) and embodied intelligence (3,780). Rather than centring on a single breakthrough, WAIC reflected an AI ecosystem advancing across infrastructure, enterprise and consumer applications simultaneously.
Why it matters: Narratives at WAIC 2026 suggest the AI conversation is becoming increasingly layered. While foundational technologies continue to dominate industry attention, organisations are placing growing emphasis on how those capabilities translate into commercial products, enterprise adoption and everyday experiences. Understanding both the technologies enabling AI and the industries adopting it provides a more complete view of where the market is heading.
A conversation concentrated on Chinese platforms
Although WAIC attracted international speakers, exhibitors and media attention, the conversation remained overwhelmingly concentrated within China. 94% of mentions originated in China, with the four Western markets analysed (US, UK, Germany, France) accounting for under 6% combined. This highlights the extent to which WAIC's media impact was shaped by China's domestic news and social ecosystem.
Chinese platforms played a central role in driving visibility throughout the conference. Online news was the largest single platform at 70.2K mentions (34.6%), followed by WeChat (65.8K, 32.2%), Weibo (34.4K, 16.9%) and Red (26.6K, 13.0%). Together, these channels accounted for the overwhelming majority of conversation, reflecting the importance of domestic media and social platforms in shaping WAIC's narrative.
In contrast, coverage in the four Western countries remained fairly limited and was concentrated in online news at 80.7%, with X/Twitter a distant second at 13.4%. Discussion focused largely on the opening keynote, with specific coverage around 29 countries signing the WAICO agreement, China's NDRC releasing its AI Cooperation and Development Action Plan, and Xi calling for global cooperation on AI development.
Why it matters: Major technology events can have global significance while their media conversation remains geographically concentrated. Organisations monitoring these events should understand where discussion is actually taking place, rather than assuming international attention is evenly distributed across markets and platforms.
From insight to intelligence: how Meltwater Social Listening Platform helps
Use case 1: Track multiple narratives as they emerge
The problem — Conferences rarely revolve around a single announcement. Policy developments, product launches and commercial applications evolve simultaneously, making it difficult to identify which narratives are gaining momentum.
What you can do
- Monitor policy, technology and industry themes in a single dashboard.
- Track volume, engagement and sentiment as narratives evolve.
- Set alerts for emerging topics rather than individual keywords.
Business outcome — Communications and insights teams can identify which stories are shaping the conversation in real time and decide where to participate before narratives become established.
Use case 2: Understand where conversations are actually happening
The problem — Events do not always generate global conversations. As WAIC demonstrated, discussion may be concentrated in specific languages, regions and platforms.
What you can do
- Track native Chinese and English keyphrases side by side.
- Analyse media and social platforms within a single workflow, including regional platforms like WeChat, Weibo and RedNote, in a single dashboard.
- Compare how narratives differ across markets and channels.
Business outcome — Teams gain a more representative view of how an event is being discussed, rather than relying on a single market or platform.
Conclusion
WAIC 2026 demonstrated that AI conversations are not defined by a single announcement or technology. While the opening keynote generated the event's largest spike in attention, policy, core technologies and commercial AI applications evolved as parallel narratives throughout the conference. At the same time, with 94% of conversation originating in China, the event highlighted how globally significant AI discussions can remain concentrated within domestic media ecosystems. For organisations tracking AI, understanding both what is shaping the conversation and where it is taking place will be critical to interpreting future industry developments.
FAQ
What was the biggest driver of World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2026 media coverage?
The opening keynote, given by Chinese President Xi Jinping, was the single biggest media driver. According to Meltwater's social listening platform, it accounted for 40.1K of the 204K total mentions tracked between 15 and 20 July 2026.
What is the World AI Cooperation Organisation (WAICO)?
WAICO is a new intergovernmental AI cooperation body headquartered in Shanghai. It was founded when 29 countries signed its charter on 16 July 2026, the day before Xi's keynote, generating 15,022 mentions in WAICO-tagged coverage on Meltwater's social listening platform.
How positive was sentiment around the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2026?
Sentiment stayed overwhelmingly healthy. Meltwater's social listening platform recorded 65% neutral and 34% positive sentiment, with under 1% negative, across the full analysis window.
Which platform carried the most conversation from the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2026?
Online news led at 70.2K mentions (34.6%), followed by WeChat at 65.8K mentions (32.2%), according to Meltwater's social listening platform data. X/Twitter was the largest non-Chinese social platform at just 3.04K mentions (1.5%).
