AI war heats up: China rejects calls to curb tech, blasts 'fearmongering' Anthropic

On Monday, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs vehemently opposed a call from Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, for the United States to restrict China's artificial intelligence development. Amodei's recent essay, published on Saturday, warned that a "Chinese lead in AI would pose grave danger for the United States and the world," urging continued restrictions on the sale of cutting-edge AI chips and chipmaking equipment to China to maintain U.S. supremacy in artificial intelligence.

Upon being questioned about Amodei's essay, foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun urged all parties to collaborate on advancing AI. In a commentary by the state-run Global Times, the essay was dismissed as a veiled attempt to "contain" China, highlighting the document's apparent focus on global AI security while being "packed with containment provisions targeting China" and resembling a "Cold War playbook for the AI sector."

China's Commerce Ministry dismissed U.S. claims as groundless, stating that "distillation" is a standard technique employed by many AI companies. The Ministry also accused the United States of attempting to "monopolize the AI industry."

As reported, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are anticipated to discuss AI governance during a meeting slated for September 24. Chinese companies have produced potent AI models that are often more affordable to use than advanced models from U.S.-based companies and, by certain metrics, are equally capable.

China's President Xi Jinping has advocated for the establishment of a global AI governance framework among Global South countries, positioning China as a pioneer in developing an open-source AI community. Additionally, the head of China's Ministry of State Security called for "accelerating the establishment of a system for preventing and managing AI security risks."