# Trump envoy Daines visits Chinese AI, space firms to lay groundwork for Xi summit in US > Source: > Published: 2026-09-01 11:54:57+00:00 Advertisement # Trump envoy Daines visits Chinese AI, space firms to lay groundwork for Xi summit in US Montana Republican’s trip coincides with intensifying tech war that has become a core front in the US-China strategic rivalry 3-MIN READ3-MIN 1 Listen US Senator Steve Daines, a close ally of President Donald Trump, has wrapped up a days-long trip to China, weeks ahead of Chinese leader [Xi Jinping](https://www.scmp.com/topics/xi-jinping?module=inline&pgtype=article?module=inline&pgtype=article)’s[planned visit to Washington](https://www.scmp.com/topics/2026-xi-trump-summits?module=inline&pgtype=article?module=inline&pgtype=article).According to a Chinese local government and multiple corporate accounts, the Montana Republican travelled from Wednesday to Saturday to China’s tech hub Hangzhou and the southern city of Guangzhou. The visit is consistent with an [earlier South China Morning Post report](https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3362582/trump-envoy-steve-daines-return-beijing-us-and-china-lock-xi-summit-agenda?module=inline&pgtype=article)about Daines’ return trip to China.Those reports showed that the Trump envoy visited a top Chinese university and several technology firms. Daines’ trip coincided with an intensifying [tech war](https://www.scmp.com/topics/us-china-tech-war?module=inline&pgtype=article)that has become a core front in the US-China strategic rivalry. As[artificial intelligence](https://www.scmp.com/topics/artificial-intelligence?module=inline&pgtype=article)and space exploration emerge as critical battlegrounds, Washington continues to tighten restrictions on bilateral academic ties.Advertisement Select Voice Select Speed 1.00x