The World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2025 opened in Shanghai on Saturday has delivered immediate outcomes with the launch of an AI governance center, an open-source initiative and a donated AI agent for disaster early warning.
At the opening ceremony of the event, the Center of Global AI Innovative Governance was officially established. Drawing on China's practical experience in AI governance, the center focuses on capacity building and drives collaborative governance. It aims to provide a wealth of international public goods to countries worldwide and contribute to the early establishment of a globally agreed-upon governance framework and standard norms.
In addition, the launch of the International Open Source AI Cooperation Initiative was also one of the key outcomes. As open source and openness are vital drivers for advancing AI development, this initiative aims to harness the wisdom of the open-source community to propel technological innovation, enhance ecological governance, accelerate application empowerment, respect intellectual property rights, and enable open-source technology to serve as a bridge that breaks barriers and illuminates a future of inclusive sharing.
China also unveiled its solution to Early Warnings for All initiative at the event. The solution features a global early warning service network encompassing multiple disaster types and intends to share China's experiences and technological achievements in early warning practices. The donation of an AI agent for urban multi-hazard early warning was also announced at the event.
WAIC 2025 delivers immediate outcomes in advancing global AI governance, cooperation
The U.S. Consumer Confidence Index fell to 89.1 in December, down from November's revised 92.9, The Conference Board said Tuesday.
The figure is also lower than market expectations of 91.9, showing that U.S. consumers are more pessimistic about current business and labor conditions amid continued economic uncertainty as the year closes.
The Present Situation Index, based on consumers' assessment of current business and labor market conditions, plunged 9.5 points to 116.8 in December. The Expectations Index, based on consumers' short-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions, held steady at 70.7, remaining below the recession threshold of 80.
Consumers' assessments of current business conditions turned mildly pessimistic in December, with 18.7 percent of consumers saying business conditions were "good," down from 21 percent in November, and 19.1 percent saying business conditions were "bad," up from 15.8 percent.
Consumers' views of the labor market were also weaker in December, as 26.7 percent of consumers said jobs were "plentiful," down from 28.2 percent in November, and 20.8 percent said jobs were "hard to get," up from 20.1 percent.
Looking ahead, consumers' outlook for income prospects was slightly less positive in December, as 18.4 percent of consumers expected their incomes to increase, up from 17.6 percent in November, while 14.7 percent expected their incomes to decrease, up from 12.5 percent. "Consumers' write-in responses on factors affecting the economy continued to be led by references to prices and inflation, tariffs and trade, and politics. However, December saw increases in mentions of immigration, war, and topics related to personal finances -- including interest rates, taxes and income, banks, and insurance, according to Dana Peterson, chief economist of The Conference Board.
U.S. consumer confidence index falls to 89.1 in December
