President Donald Trump is hosting Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Washington this week.

Their countries are in an escalating economic and tech competition, especially over artificial intelligence.

Neither side expects a grand bargain, but both want to steady fragile ties.

It is their third meeting since Trump returned to the White House.

Sen. Steve Daines is a Montana Republican who advises Trump on China.

He said the meeting and the dialogue matter as much as any outcome.

Former Chinese ambassador Cui Tiankai said the two countries always have problems, sometimes very big ones.

However, he said they will try to keep overall stability.

Xi's visit is his first to Washington in 10 years.

It comes after last year's intense trade war, when both sides raised tariffs and China limited critical mineral supplies.

Both sides seek stability for deeply competitive reasons, said Evan Medeiros of The Asia Group consultancy.

He described them as two geopolitical strongmen circling each other.

Da Wei of Tsinghua University said the countries may be entering a "new normal" of overall stability.

He added that they need to move fast on deals their governments can carry out.

AI is a key battleground.

Trump has said whoever wins AI wins, and he claimed Monday that the U.S. leads China.

China's security minister, Chen Yixin, warned in a rare essay that AI threatens Communist Party rule.

He said this could happen if hostile forces gain superior capabilities.

The U.S. restricts AI chip exports to China.

It also accuses Chinese developers of extracting American models at scale.

Beijing says the practice is widely used and criticizes U.S. efforts to monopolize the industry.

Still, the two sides are taking a small step on AI.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. proposed a "notification mechanism" for AI incidents affecting national security.

Both countries still blacklist individual companies and ban specific products.

The U.S. has targeted Chinese telecom and surveillance equipment.

It has also targeted firms accused of forced labor in Xinjiang, and advanced robots and drones.

Beijing responded with export controls on drones.

It also blacklisted six U.S. companies over Xinjiang-related measures.

After the Supreme Court struck down Trump's tariffs this year, the administration imposed them in other ways.

The White House in July set a 12.5% tariff on imports from 60 trading partners, including China.

It plans an extra 7.5% tariff on China.

Analysts say current tariff levels are acceptable to both sides.

However, a significant uptick could renew tensions.

On Iran, Washington is pressing to isolate Tehran, but Beijing insists on its right to trade with Iran.

Trump paused a large weapons package to Taiwan after his May trip to Beijing.

Analysts say Xi will likely press him to delay arms sales further.