President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that his opening appeal to Chinese President Xi Jinping will be a request that China "open up" its economy to western businesses. He made the comment while aboard Air Force One, en-route to a three-day state visit to China with a delegation of leading U.S. executives.
In a social media post, Trump described Xi as "a Leader of extraordinary distinction" and said, "I will be asking President Xi... to 'open up' China so that these brilliant people can work their magic... I will make that my very first request."
The president confirmed that Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, is among the business leaders traveling with him. Other members of the delegation include Elon Musk of Tesla, Tim Cook of Apple - whom Trump referred to as "Tim Apple" - and executives from Blackstone, BlackRock, Boeing, Cargill, Citi, GE Aerospace, Goldman Sachs, Micron and Qualcomm.
Trump is expected to press a range of issues with President Xi, with trade tariffs, artificial intelligence and Taiwan identified as topics for discussion. Some observers noted that the Biden administration's predecessor's meeting with Xi could also play a role in easing a standoff over Iran.
This trip marks the first state visit to China by a U.S. leader in nearly ten years; the president last visited China during his first term in office. The visit occurs amid frayed relations between the world's largest economies following a bitter trade war in 2025 and ongoing disputes over AI chips and arms sales to Taiwan.
The state visit was originally scheduled for early April but was pushed back to May due to the war in Iran. Trump's itinerary in China includes a welcome ceremony, two bilateral meetings with President Xi, a state banquet and a number of recreational activities.
Contextual note - The delegation's composition highlights representation from major technology, financial, aerospace and agricultural companies, indicating the breadth of commercial interests at stake during the discussions.