Over the past few weeks, a noteworthy amount of AI-related news has been trending on Chinese social media, which is reflected in this week’s edition.

Now that AI has entered every corner of media consumption and online life, related discussions seem to be reaching a new peak. While well-produced AI dramas are receiving more praise, low-effort AI slop is flooding video feeds and increasingly being used to stir controversy and generate clicks, fueling prejudice, hate, and cyber-nationalism. More about that further down in this newsletter.

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🗞️ QUICK SCROLLS

 

🎬 A new AI-generated micro-drama has become all the rage on Chinese social media. While earlier AI dramas were criticized for being sloppy and repetitive, Laid-Off Girl (被裁掉的女孩) is praised for its quality and appealing protagonist, Fang Taozi (方桃子), a small-town woman pursuing her dream of becoming a model in Paris. She is so believable that viewers almost forget they are not watching a live-action production. This marks a real step up in quality for the industry, raising the bar for others. (If you want to get a taste of what it looks like, here’s a YouTube link).

📺 China’s national TV has now also aired its very first AI drama. While AI dramas mostly belonged to the realm of unofficial short-form online productions, the phenomenon has now made the leap to longer productions broadcast on national satellite television. Anhui TV is airing the Ming-dynasty drama The Tale of Peach Blossom Pool (桃花潭记), promoted as China’s first fully AI-produced medium-length drama centered on cultural heritage.

📱 China’s cheap & easy SIM-card era has ended. There was a time when you could get a SIM at any street corner in a Chinese city. That changed over a decade ago when real-name registration became strictly enforced. Now, as of 1 August, China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom will sell cards online only through their own apps and websites, cutting off all third-party internet sellers who have been the go-to source for cheap data plans. The move is meant to curb third-party SIM cards ending up in grey-market chains, being used for bulk account registration and telecom fraud. But most people just fear that plans are becoming less affordable.

🚇 “Half an hour queuing for a ten-minute ride” was a common complaint after Shenzhen Metro tightened its security checks on July 20. Much to the dismay of commuters, the stricter checks led to long lines, as all carry-on items must now pass through an X-ray machine, while every passenger is also subject to a handheld body scan. Some wondered why, in an era of AI-powered image screening, security couldn’t be handled more efficiently. Shenzhen is hosting the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting later this year, in November.

☀️ Summer childcare worries have been trending, as even dual-income families are reportedly struggling to arrange childcare during the school holidays. Summer programs often last only a month and still require pick-ups during hot afternoons, while private tutors sometimes charge around 200 yuan per hour ($30). More Chinese parents have therefore turned to hiring university students, offering 3,500 to 4,000 yuan per month ($520–$590) to look after their children during the summer break.

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👁️ EXPLAINER

How Chinese AI Videos Turn Foreigners Into Villains

 

“I’m American! You can’t do anything to me!” says a young white man, moments before a strong Chinese man kicks him and throws him to the ground in a single move. A crowd of Chinese aunties standing nearby applauds as the foreigner hits the ground. “Don’t think we’re still the Chinese people of the past,” the Chinese man says. “You don’t want to mess with the Chinese people of today.”

This is just one example among hundreds of similar short videos flooding Chinese social media these days. Featuring various kinds of anti-foreign and racist content, they depict foreigners as threats to China’s social, moral, and national order. Strong, confident Chinese people confront, violently beat, and humiliate them in defense of their country.

These videos, which often last between ten seconds and half a minute, are posted by online creators across platforms such as WeChat, Kuaishou, and Douyin. Many of these creators run content-farming accounts devoted entirely to this type of content, which attracts many likes and reactions: the videos are short, visually striking, emotionally powerful, and play into existing prejudices and racialized thinking.

Racist and anti-foreign content is nothing new on Chinese social media and dates back to the earliest days of China’s online video platforms. But the age of AI has brought new dynamics to such content. Last fall, Joshua Dummer reported in Foreign Policy on the growing popularity of AI-generated anti-Black videos presented as cautionary tales about Chinese women becoming involved with African men.

This time, it’s different.

The latest wave of anti-foreign content goes beyond gender dynamics and focuses more broadly on the negative influence foreigners supposedly have on Chinese people and society. Foreigners disrupt orderly Chinese public spaces or threaten the safety of Chinese women, security personnel, or lower-status workers, after which a morally upright Chinese person restores order through violence.

 

Four Types of Videos

 

In the dozens of AI videos I’ve analyzed, roughly four categories can be discerned, with different groups of foreigners performing different “narrative jobs.”
(See examples of these videos on my X here, or find them on Bluesky)

 
1️⃣ The Uncivilized Outsider
 

Roughly 40% of the videos show foreigners engaging in “uncivilized” behavior and disrupting China’s cleanliness, etiquette, and public order. In these scenes, foreigners are portrayed as dirty, smelly, and disorderly.

One example shows an entire plane of Chinese passengers holding handkerchiefs over their noses because of the smell from an Indian man’s bare feet. He refuses to comply with the flight attendant’s instructions, after which a strong Chinese man approaches and slaps him in the face.

Other examples include foreigners attempting to urinate in the street, occupying multiple seats on public transport, putting their bare feet up on a high-speed train, or otherwise disregarding public etiquette.

These videos predominantly feature Indian characters, but to a lesser extent also white/Western and Filipino characters.

 
2️⃣ The Entitled Foreign Bully
 

Roughly 30% of the videos depict foreigners as arrogant, entitled, and aggressive bullies who believe their nationality places them above Chinese rules.

Examples include foreign men and women skipping queues by invoking their foreign status or showing disrespect toward China’s vulnerable elderly or lower-status workers, until a Chinese person teaches them to “respect China’s rules.”

These videos mostly feature white people, but sometimes also Black, Indian, or Japanese characters.

One scene shows an Indian man demanding that the Chinese waiter serving him curry kneel before him, after which the waiter scolds him and throws the curry in his face.

 
3️⃣ The Sexual and Demographic Threat
 

Roughly 20% of the videos fall into the category described in Foreign Policy last October, in which foreign men are portrayed as sexual and demographic intruders.

These videos often show Chinese women following foreign partners to Africa or India, only to end up living a nightmare of poverty, abuse, or infidelity. Some explicitly warn Chinese women not to marry foreigners.

There are also many videos showing Chinese men as heroic protectors of women being harassed by foreign men. One recurring scenario shows a Black man harassing a Chinese woman in a shopping street before being beaten by a Chinese man who comes to her defense.

Although these videos mainly feature Black African men, with Africa portrayed as a kind of dystopia, some also include white or Indian men.

 
4️⃣ The Undesirable/Dangerous Migrant
 

About 10% of the videos take place at airport immigration or border control, showing foreigners arriving without money, carrying drugs, or seeking to exploit Chinese hospitality.

One example shows Indian men arriving at the Chinese border and claiming that they want to “enjoy Chinese women.” They are refused entry after an official questions them about their finances.

The endgame is always the same: they are denied entry and sent back to their country. These stories predominantly feature Indian characters.

💡 To get a rough idea of which racialized groups appear most often, I analyzed a sample of 35 videos collected from my timeline: approximately 39% featured Indian characters, 28% White/Western characters, 24% Black/African characters, 6% Filipino characters, and 3% Japanese characters.

 

Reversed Humiliation

 

The xenophobic AI slop that we’re seeing is about more than just “foreigners behaving badly.” Besides the videos showing Chinese women moving to Africa, the basic formula running through most of them is:

Foreigners cross moral or social boundaries and violate rules → they victimize Chinese people or otherwise bring humiliation or inconvenience to others → forceful intervention by a morally upright Chinese person → punishment and restored order.

These videos do two things.

➡️ One important effect is that they produce a sense of “Chineseness” by constructing a threatening “Other” that is never Chinese (even though the foreigners all look different, they are never ethnically Chinese). In doing so, Chinese national identity is defined through contrast with how bad the Other is.

The foreign villain is deceptive, uncivilized, backward, and disruptive—a threat to women, public order, and social stability—whereas the Chinese characters are morally superior, embodying loyalty, civility, modernity, collective responsibility, and the protection of social and historical continuity. The foreigner therefore does more than play the villain: his imagined identity helps define who the Chinese are and what contemporary China is.

➡️ Another effect is that these videos offer a form of catharsis in China’s “new era.” They coincide with increasingly prominent narratives about China’s exceptional rise, its emerging superpower status, and the “decline of the West.” At the same time, they evoke the painful history of 19th China and the “century of humiliation”—a period portrayed in contemporary education as one in which foreign powers aggressively and violently imposed their rules on a weak China.

These AI fantasies symbolically reverse that history. The videos show that Chinese people are no longer passive victims, but strong and assertive defenders who fight back against foreigners who disrespect them or exploit Chinese hospitality. Through violence presented as morally justified, historical humiliation is transformed into national victory: China is no longer subjected to rules imposed by outsiders, but has become the country that sets the rules and possesses the strength to enforce them.

 

The Many Faces of Chinese Digital Nationalism

 

This recent trend shows that digital nationalism in China has many faces, and that this one in particular is not actively boosted by state media nor supported by official voices.

The timing of these videos does not just mark a new era of Chinese digital nationalism; it also coincides with a new wave of China tourism and a travel boom, with trips to China by foreign nationals rising sharply since the Covid era amid more lenient visa policies. This includes an increase in visas issued to Indians at a time when Indian and Chinese authorities have been working to normalize bilateral relations.

Earlier in July, Chinese newspaper The Paper published an article pushing back against growing online hostility toward Indians in China, arguing that individual misconduct should be addressed without stereotyping an entire nationality or turning it into xenophobic outrage. In a noteworthy move, the full article was republished on the website of the Chinese embassy in New Delhi—showing Chinese authorities pushing back against these trends and defending Indians to Chinese netizens.

At the same time, this is perhaps also a case of lead by example. An AI-animated video released by state media outlet China Daily which depicted the Philippines as a “ragged monkey” has also made international headlines recently, with the imagery called racist and unacceptable.

Even though the authorities might not be happy about the flood of racist or xenophobic AI videos at a time when state media are promoting just how welcoming China is to foreigners, official videos such as these can also fan the flames and provide examples for grassroots creators to draw on.

While Trump visited Beijing for a landmark summit with Xi Jinping, Chinese netizens turned the historic encounter into a geopolitical blockbuster—complete with memes, pop-culture references, and viral moments featuring everyone from Elon Musk to Jensen Huang. This special movie-themed bumper edition of Eye on Digital China decodes the 2026 Trump–Xi Beijing summit through the lens of Chinese social media.

In This Special Edition:

🎭 The Top Cast: Who’s who in this geopolitical blockbuster
🎬 Dramatic Synopsis: The summit as a movie plot
🔍 Critical Review: Taiwan, the “Thucydides Trap,” & a Russian surprise
🧩 Memorable Scenes: The top 15 most viral memes & moments
🗣️ Quotes: Key remarks from leaders and netizens
🎬 Behind the Scenes: An unscripted moment
🎵 Soundtrack: The summit in songs

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On Chinese social media, Trump’s visit to China started before he arrived and continued after he left.

The long-awaited meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping, from May 13 to May 15, was the first visit by a sitting US president to China in nearly a decade – a major diplomatic event that has been closely followed by Chinese netizens.

Even before Trump’s Air Force One landed in Beijing, the Xi-Trump summit was top trending.

Alongside the more serious commentary, Chinese social media has been full of posts reflecting people’s curiosity, excitement, and amusement about Trump’s presence in Beijing this past week. That is not only because the meeting between the two leaders—and the issues on the table—is of major significance, but also because Trump has held a special place in China’s meme culture since the early days of his first presidency.

Trump’s first years in office catapulted him into China’s meme machine. When he remarked that Korea “used to be part of China,” and after a series of high-profile decisions—including withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, exiting the Paris Climate Agreement, and announcing that the US would leave UNESCO—many Chinese netizens joked that the US president was inadvertently helping China by weakening America’s global influence.

The trade war and Trump’s hardline stance toward Chinese tech companies were also, paradoxically, seen as forcing China to accelerate its own push for technological self-reliance and domestic innovation.

Taken together, these developments earned Trump—whose Chinese name is commonly transliterated as 川普 (Chuānpǔ)—the nickname “Build-the-Nation Trump” (川建国, Chuān Jiànguó), fueling the tongue-in-cheek notion that he is actually China’s “secret agent” who is working to undermine American power while inadvertently advancing China’s rise on the world stage.

For the same reason, he is also often referred to as “Comrade Trump” (川普同志).

This often bantering approach to US politics, combined with China’s tightly controlled online environment, where more critical and open discussions of top-level political events are always limited, has given rise to alternative narratives around major diplomatic meetings that sometimes read like a movie script.

That dynamic was already evident the moment Trump landed in Beijing.

To some Chinese netizens, his appearance at the door of Air Force One looked like a scene from The Truman Show. One post making this comparison was reposted nearly 6800 times.

“It’s not the Truman show, but the Trump show,” one netizen added.

To stay on theme, I’ll take a similarly cinematic approach in this overview of Chinese social media reactions to the Xi-Trump meeting. From “top cast” to “dramatic synopsis” and the “most memorable scenes,” let’s recast this high-level rendezvous as a Beijing blockbuster.

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🎭 The Top Cast

 

🇨🇳
⭐ Xi Jinping 习近平 – General Secretary of the Communist Party of China and President of the People’s Republic of China

• Li Qiang 李强 – Premier
• Wang Yi 王毅 – Foreign Minister
• Cai Qi 蔡奇 – Party’s organizational chief / Xi’s aide
• Yin Li 尹力 – Beijing Party chief
• He Lifeng 何立峰 – Vice Premier overseeing economic affairs
• Dong Jun 董军 – Defense Minister
• Zheng Shanjie 郑栅洁 – Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC)

• Han Zheng 韩正 – Vice President of China
• Ma Zhaoxu 马朝旭 — Executive Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs
• Xie Feng 谢锋 — Chinese Ambassador to the US
• Wang Wentao 王文涛 — Commerce Minister
• Zhao Leji 赵乐际 — Chairman of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee

• Lei Jun 雷军 — Founder and CEO of Xiaomi

🇺🇸
⭐ Donald Trump – The President of the United States of America

• Eric Trump — Trump’s son
• Lara Trump — daughter-in-law

• Marco Rubio – Secretary of State
• Pete Hegseth – Secretary of Defense
• Scott Bessent — Treasury Secretary
• David Perdue — US Ambassador to China
• Howard Lutnick — Commerce Secretary
• Jamieson Greer — US Trade Representative
• Steve Witkoff — Special Envoy

• Sean Hannity – Fox News
• Bret Baier – Fox News

Special Guest Appearances:

• Elon Musk — Tesla and X
• Tim Cook — Apple
• Larry Fink — BlackRock
• Kelly Ortberg — Boeing
• Stephen Schwarzman — Blackstone
• Brian Sikes — Cargill
• Jane Fraser — Citigroup
• Jim Anderson — Coherent
• H. Lawrence Culp Jr. — GE Aerospace
• David Solomon — Goldman Sachs
• Jacob Thaysen — Illumina
• Michael Miebach — Mastercard
• Dina Powell McCormick — Meta
• Sanjay Mehrotra — Micron Technology
• Cristiano Amon — Qualcomm

🎁 Surprise Appearance:

• Jensen Huang 黄仁勋 – CEO of Nvidia (aka “Old Boss Huang” 黄老板 aka “Leather Jacket Brother” 皮衣哥)
• X Æ A-12 Musk – Elon Musk’s 5-year-old son

Notable absence:

• Melania Trump – First Lady
• Peng Liyuan (彭丽媛) – First Lady

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🎞️ Genre and Supporting Themes

 

Political Drama ⎮ Geopolitical suspense ⎮ Romance/Tragedy

▪️ War in Iran / the Strait of Hormuz crisis
▪️ Russia’s war in Ukraine
▪️ Taiwan
▪️ Trade and tariffs
▪️ AI and semiconductor export controls
▪️ Rare earths and critical mineral supply chains

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🎬 Dramatic synopsis

 

Two powerful leaders. One increasingly unstable world.

The world’s most unpredictable dealmaker flies 13 hours to the capital of his greatest rival, his close friend, or “neither an ally nor a friend” (it changes), for a long-awaited “G2” moment aimed at stabilizing relations between two powers that publicly insist they can thrive without each other, while privately knowing the opposite may be true.

There is a lot at stake, from chips to oil and beyond. A $50 billion semiconductor market. A war in the Middle East. A rare earth supply chain. And an island of 23 million people that is on everyone’s minds.

As the flags wave in the Beijing wind, the tea is poured, and the lavish banquet is prepared, deep mistrust simmers behind carefully staged handshakes and smiles.

Will the protagonists talk their way toward a more peaceful next chapter? Will a surprise cameo by the “Leather Jacket Brother” (皮衣哥) Jensen Huang help move the plot forward? And, in an increasingly fragile global order, will the eagle and the dragon finally realize that they may need each other more than they are willing to admit?

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📝 Production Schedule

 

📌 May 13 (Wednesday) – Arrival Day

🔹 Evening: Beijing Capital International Airport
– Trump and his delegation arrive in Beijing
– They are welcomed by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng (韩正)

📌 May 14 (Thursday) — The Main Day

🔹 Morning: The Great Hall of the People
– Welcome ceremony, military parade
– Bilateral talks between Trump and Xi for over two hours
🔹 Afternoon: Temple of Heaven (天坛)
– Joint tour of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (祈年殿)
🔹 Evening: The Great Hall of the People
– State Banquet (国宴) hosted by Xi Jinping

📌 May 15 (Friday) — Working Sessions & Departure

🔹 Morning: Zhongnanhai (中南海)
– Zhongnanhai private garden tour
– Trump and Xi small-group talks
🔹 Afternoon: Beijing Capital International Airport
– Trump’s departure in the afternoon around 14:30

📝 The business delegation track ran in parallel with the CEOs having their own meetings with Chinese counterparts on the sidelines of the Xi-Trump meetings.

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🧵 Critical Review

 

A lot has happened since Trump and Xi’s previous face-to-face meeting in Busan, making this major bilateral meeting one that the entire world watched.

As described by China’s foreign ministry, during their meeting, Trump and Xi “explored the correct way for two major powers to coexist,” while the White House stressed that the two sides mostly “discussed ways to enhance economic cooperation between our two countries.”

During their “G2” moment, Xi and Trump spent nearly nine hours together in total—from the formal talks at the Great Hall of the People to their walk-and-talk at the Temple of Heaven, the banquet, and the smaller-group session at Zhongnanhai.

One thing that stood out throughout the visit was the extent to which both sides went out of their way to flatter one another. From the moment Trump arrived at the airport until the second he departed, he received full VIP treatment: children waving flags, a 21-gun salute, a lavish state banquet, and even a PLA military band performing his unofficial YMCA anthem.

Trump, in turn, repeatedly praised Xi as a “great leader,” called China “a wonderful country,” described Beijing as “a great place,” and said he had received “a magnificent welcome like none other.” He also said that US–China relations had a “fantastic future together.”

During the 2025 Trump-Xi meeting in South Korea, a common observation was that “the truth lies in the details” (细节见真章), and the same was true this time. Chinese media and netizens paid close attention to small gestures: Trump being the first to extend his hand, his red tie (with red symbolizing success and good fortune in Chinese culture), and the way he worked his way down the receiving line of senior Chinese officials, shaking each of their hands outside the Great Hall of the People.

One widely discussed moment was Trump’s military-style salute to Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun (董军). The gesture was warmly received online, with some netizens joking that “the comrade has returned home” (同志回家了).

It is clear that hospitality and warm rhetoric were not the problem. At least on the surface, this temporary US–China Beijing honeymoon looked picture-perfect, and became a true media spectacle. But behind the red carpets and blue skies, several deeper themes emerged.

 

🔍 The Thucydides Trap

 

An important narrative element on the Chinese side was the “Thucydides Trap” as mentioned by Xi Jinping during the formal bilateral meeting at the Great Hall of the People.

The “Thucydides Trap” (修昔底德陷阱) is a concept popularized by Harvard scholar Graham Allison, drawing on the ancient Greek historian Thucydides, which holds that war becomes highly likely when a rising power challenges the established ruling power.

“The world has come to a new crossroads,” Xi said: “Can China and the United States overcome the so-called ‘Thucydides Trap’ and create a new paradigm of major-country relations?”

This “new paradigm” and the new shape of US-China relations became one of the most important themes of this meeting. The broader message from the Chinese side was clear: China sees its growing role on the world stage as inevitable, and the United States is expected to make room for that reality. Or, put differently, the world order is changing, and there are now more captains on this ship.

 

🔍 Taiwan issue

 

The “Thucydides Trap: concept is also closely tied to “the Taiwan problem,” and China’s pre-summit warnings on the issue left little room for misunderstandings.

On the Chinese side, Taiwan was framed as its most important issue and a red line, with officials warning that the broader US–China relationship could be jeopardized if the “Taiwan question” were mishandled.

⚠️ “If it is handled properly, the bilateral relationship will enjoy overall stability,” Xi told Trump. “Otherwise, the two countries will have clashes and even conflicts, putting the entire relationship in great jeopardy.”

Xi emphasized that ‘Taiwan independence’ and cross-Strait peace are as “irreconcilable as fire and water” (水火不容), adding that maintaining peace and stability across the Strait represents the greatest common interest shared by China and the United States.

After the summit, it became clear that the US side understood China’s position. In an interview with Fox News, Trump acknowledged that Taiwan is “one of their [China’s] most important issues.” Stressing that China does not want to see Taiwan become independent, Trump said he preferred to maintain the status quo and cautioned Taiwan against formally declaring independence from China.

He also suggested that the United States has no interest in becoming involved in a war between Taiwan and mainland China. “Do we really have to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war? I’m not looking for that.”

His comments seemed to suggest that, for now, respecting China’s red lines while preserving the status quo may be sufficient to keep things stable.

Trump’s words seemed to raise alarm bells in Tapei, where a presidential spokesperson said it was “self-evident” that Taiwan is “a sovereign, independent democratic country”.

Meanwhile, on Chinese social media, official channels widely reported on Trump’s words, and a related Weibo hashtag (#特朗普警告台独#) received over 230 million views.

One Weibo commenter wrote:

💬 “The meal wasn’t eaten for nothing [饭没白吃]. Comrade Trump really did deliver!”

 

🔍 Historic Continuum

 

One notable aspect of this visit was the extent to which both sides emphasized the long historical continuum and importance of Sino–US relations.

The visit to the Temple of Heaven was symbolic in several ways. Beyond the site’s significance in Chinese history, it was also known to much appreciated by Henry Kissinger, who helped pave the way for the normalization of Sino-American relations in the 20th century.

During his state banquet speech, Trump also highlighted the deep historical roots of US–China relations, and drew a direct line from ancient Chinese philosophy to the intellectual roots of the United States.

He noted that Benjamin Franklin published sayings of Confucius as early as 1737, referenced Confucius’s depiction on the façade of the Supreme Court of the United States, and mentioned how President Theodore Roosevelt channeled Boxer Indemnity funds toward the founding of the prestigious Tsinghua University, Xi Jinping’s alma mater.

Also noteworthy is how Trump stressed that China and the US were “allies in World War II,” with Roosevelt’s mentions of “the brave people of China.”

The speech was praised on Chinese social media. One popular blogger wrote:

💬 “Holy sh*t. Trump’s toast was full of classical references and complex sentences. He actually did his homework.”

Taken together, Trump’s remarks and the historical framing in Chinese media conveyed a broader diplomatic message: Sino-American relations in 2026 were presented as part of a much longer history that had led to this moment. This gave the meeting added weight, framing it as a major turning point and the start of a new era in US–China relations, rather than just another bilateral talk.

 

🔍 Russian Surprise

 

While Xi and Trump were in the midst of the state banquet, media reports came out from Moscow that Kremlin spokesperson Peskov had announced that Putin’s will soon visit China, and that preparations were complete, with the date to be announced “soon” (later confirmed: May 19-20).

A related hashtag immediately reached the top trending lists, with many netizens responding to the Putin visit news with a mix of nationalistic pride and humor – joking just how popular and lively Beijing is as an international “hotspot.”

With China hosting both the US and Russian leaders within the same week, many suggested it underscored just how important China’s role in global diplomacy is.

💬 “Trump will be seated in front of the tv just to ensure Putin isn’t getting better treatment than him,” one commenter joked.

Despite the commotion over the accouncement, some commenters on Zhihu suggested that it actually was not such a big deal.

💬 “Don’t overthink it,” one Zhihu user wrote: “Trump’s itinerary was pushed back to May, it was originally scheduled for April.”

Others argued that these visits should be placed into a larger context of China playing a key diplomatic role for resolving the Iran war and the Hormuz crisis.

💬 “Don’t just focus on Putin coming — look at the sequence before him: first Iran’s Foreign Minister Araghchi, then Trump, then Putin, then Pakistan (already announced). Except for Israel, every party involved in the Hormuz Strait issue, and everyone with meaningful influence over it, has come.”

Then there were those who saw deeper meanings behind the dates:

💬 “Trump chose the 13th and 14th to visit China. Putin chose May 20th to visit China. Both are expressing their sincerity very directly! 1314520.”

In Chinese online culture, the numbers “1314” sound like 一生一世 (yīshēng yīshì), meaning “for a lifetime” or “always and forever,” while “520” sounds like 我爱你 (wǒ ài nǐ), or “I love you.” With Trump picking 13/14 (一生一世) and Putin choosing 5/20 (我爱你), they seemed to be spelling out a love confession to China, with Xi Jinping, apparently, as the most sought-after romantic partner in global diplomacy.

 

🔍 Uncertain Conclusions?

 

According to Chinese official sources, the summit’s main diplomatic outcome was the agreement to frame China–US relations as a “constructive strategic stability relationship” (中美建设性战略稳定关系) — a new official positioning of the bilateral friendship.

In Trump’s own words: “The relationship between the United States and China is going to be better than ever before.”

In the commentary that has emerged since the summit, opinions are divided over how much the nine hours of talks between Xi and Trump will change or impact the key issues at hand. Various international media wrote that there is little clarity about what was actually achieved.

What does seem clear, however, is that for the time being both sides got something they wanted: friendlier China–US relations, an America that appears more cautious in its wording on an “independent Taiwan,” and a China that agrees with the United States that Iran should never obtain nuclear weapons.

Whether this will amount to a true “happy ending” remains to be seen, but it does mark the beginning of a new phase in bilateral relations—one in which there appears to be greater understanding of each other’s positions.

Xi accepted Trump’s invitation to visit Washington this autumn and also promised to send him seeds from the roses he admired in the former imperial garden at Zhongnanhai. At the very least, something tangible will bloom from these meetings.

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🧩 Memorable Scenes

 

📌 1. Memes in Anticipation

On Chinese social media, Trump’s China visit had already begun a day or more before the president’s arrival in Beijing, with various AI-generated memes imagining the trip. These ranged from images of Trump and Elon Musk enjoying Beijing street food and Tsingtao beer to scenes of Trump and his entourage solemnly visiting the Temple of Heaven and, in all earnestness, paying their respects there.

 

📌 2. The Grandson Coming to America

Before Trump’s arrival, rumors spread across Weibo and WeChat that CCTV-6, the movie channel of China’s state broadcaster, would air the Chinese film A Grandson from America (孙子从美国来) on the day he landed in Beijing. The 1990s feel-good film, about an elderly man in rural China who unexpectedly becomes the caregiver for his American grandson, was seen as a cheeky nod to the meeting between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump, with the American “grandson” cast as clearly inferior in status to his Chinese “grandfather.”

The rumor, however, turned out to be false.

The supposed CCTV-6 programming was itself a meme. Perhaps so many people were willing to believe it because CCTV-6 has occasionally made eyebrow-raising scheduling choices before—such as changing its lineup to air anti-American Korean War films for three consecutive days when the U.S.-China trade war was heating up.

 

📌3. Jensen Huang’s Surprise Attendance

When Jensen Huang (黄仁勋), the CEO of NVIDIA, boarded Air Force One during a stopover in Anchorage, Alaska, he instantly went viral.

Huang plays a special role in this story because he has become a symbol of the central technological dispute between China and the United States. China is one of NVIDIA’s most important potential markets, but the company’s most advanced AI chips are currently barred from being sold there under US export controls.

It was initially reported that Huang would not be joining the trip. When he appeared at the last minute after all, Chinese social media quickly responded with a wave of memes imagining all kinds of ways he might have boarded the presidential delegation in Alaska.

Like this video. Or the images below. Some people joked that “Leather Jacket Brother” (皮衣哥), as he is nicknamed in China for his signature black leather jacket, was invited so last-minute that he didn’t even have time to bring any luggage – explaining why he stood on the tarmack without any suitcases.

Various memes showed him chasing after the Air Force One plane, and others showed him ‘bribing” the delegation to pick him up with big packs of Maotai liquor or other goods.

 

📌 4. The “Chinese” Meals Served on Board of the Air Force One

Photos of the meals served aboard Air Force One quickly made their way onto Chinese social media. The menu consisted of sliced beef brisket, onions, bell peppers, bok choy, and lo mein noodles stir-fried in a sesame soy sauce and topped with chopped scallions, along with a spring roll, a fortune cookie, and a beverage of choice.

The photo was posted by Margo Martin, communications deputy director in the Trump administration, and reactions on Chinese social media were mixed. Some appreciated that the American side was already trying out something more “Chinese” ahead of the visit. Others argued that the meal had little to do with actual Chinese cuisine and instead reflected a stereotypical version of American Chinese food.

 

📌 5. Lonely Soldier in Front of Air Force One

When Air Force One arrived at Beijing Capital International Airport on the evening of May 13, and millions of people tuned into the livestreams of Trump’s arrival, a People’s Liberation Army honor guard soldier stood completely still at his post. The contrast of the enormous American presidential plane coming in and the Chinese soldier not moving a millimeter made an impression and went viral as a symbol of Chinese diligence and pride.

 

📌 6. Trump’s Visit Finally Gets Bumpy Road Fixed

One viral post joked about a familiar phenomenon in China: infrastructure projects that have dragged on for years suddenly get completed at lightning speed when an important political event is about to happen. The post showed construction workers, just ahead of Trump’s visit, busy working on the road near the Temple of Heaven north gate – the route the US delegation would be taking.

💬 “This stretch of road has been in terrible condition for years, but it looks like they’re going to fix it overnight. Once again, the deadline proves to be the number one productive force.”

 

📌 7. Trump’s “Crazy Thursday”

A running joke on Chinese social media was that Donald Trump had deliberately arrived on a Wednesday night so he could be in China just in time for KFC’s “Crazy Thursday” (疯狂星期四).

Since its launch, the weekly KFC promotion has become deeply embedded in Chinese internet culture. So it was only natural for netizens to imagine Trump, Elon Musk, Jensen Huang, and Tim Cook heading out for a late-night snack after the state banquet.

What should he order? Since Trump’s Chinese name is Chuan-pu (川普, Chuānpǔ), the obvious choice would be a Chuan-Burger (川味汉堡, Chuānwèi Hànbǎo) — a Sichuan-style spicy burger, of course.

 

📌 8. The Magpie Moment

One of the most noteworthy moments of the morning of May 14 came when a magpie landed just behind Donald Trump as he stepped out of his car.

The moment, captured by a Hong Kong reporter, quickly created a buzz online. In Chinese culture, the magpie (喜鹊, xǐquè) is traditionally seen as a symbol of good news and prosperity — the first character, 喜 (xǐ), means “joy” or “happiness.” Netizens were quick to interpret the bird’s appearance as a sign that Trump’s visit had the approval of the heavens.

 

📌 9. Elon Musk “360-Degree Filming”

After the bilateral meeting, the American delegation posed for a group photo on the steps of the Great Hall of the People. Elon Musk — affectionately nicknamed “Old Musk” (老马, Lǎo Mǎ) by Chinese netizens — drew particular attention for his enthusiastic “360-degree filming.” Like an excited tourist, he spun in a full circle while recording everything around him.

“They were genuinely happy today,” was how Hong Kong media outlet Ta Kung Wen Wei framed the moment.

On Weibo, one related hashtag received over 80 million views, while another hashtag surpassed 99 million views.

 

📌 10. Lei Jun’s Selfie Moment with Elon Musk

One of the most-reposted moments of the state banquet was when Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun approached the table where Tesla CEO Elon Musk was seated before the start of the dinner, and snapped a quick selfie with him, while Musk was pulling some funny expressions.

Lei Jun’s spontaneous photo was jokingly called a sign of “star chasing” and “fan behavior.” The tech entrepreneur was one of the first Model S owners in China, and admired Musk long before the Xiaomi EV line. Some Xiaomi EV drivers joked that he was making them lose face.

Some netizens used AI to swap the situation around.

 

📌 11. Fox News Reporter Bret Baier Going Local

During the summit, many netizens snapped pictures and videos of Fox News reporter Bret Baier going around the city reporting, which created a funny unintended Droste effect with Beijing reports coming out on how he reported on Beijing.

🔹 Chinese media reported on how Bret Baier was reporting on China by ordering a sausage in English from a robot clerk at a convenience store (video).

🔹 Baier also reported on China as a surveillance state. Meanwhile, clips of him making that point were circulating widely on Chinese social media. In one segment, he told viewers that his crew’s driver received a parking fine on his phone just minutes after illegally parking, using it as a live example of China’s surveillance capabilities. Chinese netizens were quick to point out the irony, noting that Baier himself appeared to be violating traffic rules by filming while standing in an active traffic lane (video).

🔹 He was also spotted playing table tennis in a Beijing park in sweltering weather while wearing a full suit, much to the amusement of many netizens (video).

 

📌 12. Elon Musk’s 5-Year-Old Son Becomes Youngest Influencer

Jensen Huang wasn’t the only surprise guest at the summit. Elon Musk also brought along his five-year-old son, X Æ A-12 (in China, simply known as “Little X” 小X). The little boy appeared in a Chinese-style vest and carried a traditional tiger-head bag (虎头包), making him, quite possibly, the youngest person ever to attend a state-level U.S.–China summit.

One unexpected side effect of X’s appearance in summit footage was a surge of interest in his outfit. Chinese netizens quickly identified both the handmade tiger-head bag – from a Guangxi ethnic minority artisan brand – and the Chinese-style vest, and links to the items spread across social media. On Taobao, the bag was listed for 338 yuan (about US$49), while the vest sold for around 16 yuan (US$2.35).

The bag’s viral success became a major news story, framed as “traditional intangible cultural heritage going global.” Hand-stitched by Guangxi ethnic minority embroiderers, the tiger-head bag sold out within hours. (I also ordered one on Taobao, and received a notification today that they won’t be shipping out until late July).

 

📌 13. The Banquet Centerpiece 

The centerpiece table at the welcoming banquet—which accompanied dishes such as lobster in golden broth, crispy spiced beef, Peking roast duck, salmon in mustard sauce, classic conch pastry, tiramisu, and more—was a spectacle in its own right and quickly became a topic of discussion online.

Designed as an elaborate miniature landscape, it featured a large pond, swans (traditional symbols of fidelity and harmony), white doves representing peace, flowers, garden pavilions, and a detailed replica of Beijing’s Temple of Heaven.

 

📌 14. Jensen Huang Has Noodles in the Hutongs

Jensen Huang went viral multiple times over the past week, but one standout moment was his noodle stop at a hutong in central Beijing. He was filmed standing outside eating while dozens of people watched and took pictures; other clips showed him strolling through the surrounding alleyways.

About the noodle place: the address is No. 83 Fangzhuanchang Hutong (方砖厂胡同83号院). It is a small Bib Gourmand-listed eatery that serves only zhajiangmian (Beijing fried sauce noodles). Waiting in line was already common, but with Jensen Huang’s visit going viral, queues are likely to get even longer. Located between Nanluoguxiang and Qianhai, it makes for a perfect stop for a late lunch and an afternoon stroll. (Worth noting for your next hutong trip.)

The restaurant, by the way, was remarkably quick to capitalize on the moment and establish itself as the Jensen Huang noodle spot. By May 15, it had already put up a poster featuring Jensen Huang enjoying a bowl of noodles there (image via @_FORAB on X).

 

📌 15. The KTV Night

Chinese netizens jokingly fantasized about what would happen after the Trump–Xi summit: a late-night KTV session in Beijing with Donald Trump, Tim Cook, Lei Jun, Elon Musk and Larry Fink.

With the whisky bottles, fruit platters, and dim purple lighting, it is a classic Chinese KTV scene. The men sing “My Good Brother” (我的好兄弟) together, an appropriate song about friendship, loyalty, and supporting each other through difficult times.

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🗣️ Quotes

 

🎙️ “The most important thing by far: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon” (Donald Trump upon departure from D.C. to China).

🎙️ “There are those who say this is maybe the biggest summit ever. They can never remember anything like it. In the United States, people aren’t talking about anything else.” (Donald Trump during the bilateral meeting in the Great Hall of the People.)

-“It seems Trump was very happy with the welcome ceremony. This is a treatment he’s never enjoyed in the US, and the US probably could not organize a welcome ceremony on this scale.” (Popular Weibo comment after the welcome ceremony.)

🎙️ “The Taiwan issue is the most important issue in China–US relations. If it is handled properly, the overall relationship between the two countries can remain stable. If it is handled poorly, the two sides could face confrontation or even conflict, pushing the broader China–US relationship into a highly dangerous situation.” (Comments by Xi during bilateral meeting as reiterated by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.)

🎙️ “This visit is a historic and landmark visit. Thus far, we have established a new bilateral relationship – a constructive strategic stable relationship – which constitutes a milestone event.” (Xi Jinping while hosting Trump in Zhongnanhai.)

🎙️ “The days of Trump’s visit to China were the most disciplined, most normal, and most presidential days since he took office.” (Blogger @许韬de微博 on May 15.)

🎙️ “The Chinese do not want to see this place—let’s just call it a place, because no one knows how to define it—go independent. I think they probably would do something pretty harsh, and then they would be met harshly and bad things will happen (..) But I’d like to stay the way it is (..) I don’t want anyone to become independent. Do we really have to travel 9500 miles to fight a war? I am not looking for that.” – (Trump in Fox News Special Report Spotlight, May 15.)

🎙️ “The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and making America great again can proceed in parallel, reinforce one another, and benefit the world.” (Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on May 15 during a press briefing.)

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🎬 Behind the Scenes

 

During a B-roll-style Fox News livestream that, for at least 90 minutes, showed little more than preparations and staff members walking around the Temple of Heaven grounds, one cameraman kept rolling during a notable confrontation between the U.S. press pool and Chinese security.

While Trump and Xi Jinping toured the historic site, journalists and some members of the U.S. delegation were directed into a holding room inside the temple complex. They protested, insisting they were part of the Trump motorcade. The four-minute clip—which I extracted from the two-hour livestream and posted here—ends with journalists physically pushing their way out to rejoin the motorcade, with one member of the group reportedly saying, “We’re leaving! Don’t treat others the way they treat us.”

The incident occurred around the same time that one of Trump’s Secret Service agents was reportedly denied entry to the complex because he was armed, causing a delay in the visit.

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🎵 Soundtrack

 

During the banquet, the Military Band of the People’s Liberation Army (中国人民解放军军乐团), led by conductor Wang Dengmei (王登梅), performed a music program: the actual soundtrack of this trip, with some notable choices.

🎵 Yulin Folk Tune (榆林小曲) — Traditional northern Shaanxi folk music, highlighting Chinese regional culture.

🎵 America the Beautiful (美丽的阿美利坚) — Iconic patriotic song honoring the United States.

🎵 China in the Glow of Lights (灯火里的中国) — Contemporary song celebrating China’s prosperity and development.

🎵 Edelweiss (雪绒花) — Familiar American favorite from The Sound of Music, evoking warmth and nostalgia.

🎵 The Butterfly Lovers (梁山伯与祝英台) — Classic Chinese love story and one of China’s best-known orchestral works.

🎵 Sousa March Carnival (苏萨进行曲《童年华》) — Festive medley of classic American marches.

🎵 Under the Silver Moonlight (在银色月光下) — Beloved folk song symbolizing China’s ethnic diversity.

🎵 We Are the World (天下一家) — Message of global unity and cooperation.

🎵 As You Wish (如愿) — Popular modern Chinese ballad.

🎵 Can You Feel the Love Tonight (今夜爱无限) — Disney’s Lion King song emphasizing harmony and affection.

🎵 Ode to the Pear Blossom (梨花颂) — Peking opera-inspired piece showcasing traditional Chinese artistry.

🎵 Y.M.C.A. — Trump’s unofficial anthem and a lighthearted diplomatic gesture.

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That’s a wrap!

Many thanks to Miranda Barnes for helping curate some of the most memorable memes.

By Manya Koetse
(follow on X, LinkedIn, or Instagram)

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