Bill Gates calls on Xi Jinping amid US-China diplomatic tensions

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates on Friday called on Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing — marking the philanthropist's first visit to China in four years — at a time when US-China relations are quite soured and tensions are running high over the future of advanced semiconductors and AI development.

Gates' primary focus on his trip is "to visit with partners who have been working on global health and development challenges" with his family's eponymous foundation for more than a decade, he said on Twitter. 

The visit is part of a string of Western business leaders visiting China since the country ended its strict Covid controls that largely closed it off from the world for nearly three years. Gates' Foundation pledged around $50 million to help Chinese efforts to battle the disease. 

During the meeting, Xi told Gates that China had always placed its hopes in the American people and hoped for continued friendship between the two countries regardless of current affairs. Gates, in turn, praised China's efforts in tackling the Covid-19 pandemic, setting a good example for the world. 

The billionaire's latest visit comes at a very precarious time for US-China relations as tensions are run high over the future of advanced semiconductors and AI development, Chinese raids by officials on international companies and heightened fear of attacks on Taiwan.

Gates stepped down from his role as Microsoft chairman nearly a decade ago and left the board in 2020. 

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced its collaboration with the Global Health Drug Discovery Institute to support Chinese efforts to fight diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis. The meeting comes ahead of an expected visit to China by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday.

 Other American business leaders, including JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and Apple CEO Tim Cook, have also recently visited China, citing optimism about the country's vast market and trade ties between the two economic powerhouses.