China moves to tighten controls on AI exports, citing national security risks
The proposal covers 40 technologies, including 23 related to AI.
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- China proposed export controls on 40 advanced technologies, including 23 tied to artificial intelligence.
- The draft covers major AI models, AI agents, and large computer systems used to train AI.
- Foreign users could still access Chinese AI services through websites, apps, and online software platforms.
- Open-source tools and public research would generally stay outside the proposed restrictions.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
China is weighing new export controls on its advanced technology, including AI, potentially expanding restrictions to 40 technologies amid intensifying competition with the US.
On October 16th, China's Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Science and Technology published a draft document proposing to ban or restrict exports of 40 technologies spanning solar power, AI, chip design, and biomedicine. Of these, 23 are AI-related, including advanced large language models, AI agents, and computing clusters.
Under the proposal, China would control exports of AI models containing restricted technologies, but access through application programming interfaces (APIs), websites, apps, and software-as-a-service platforms would be exempt from the restrictions.
This would let people abroad keep using Chinese AI services from companies like DeepSeek even with the new rules in place.
Covered exports would include technology for AI models with at least 2 trillion parameters, such as Kimi K3 and Alibaba's Qwen3.8-Max, as well as models ranking among the world's top 10 in performance, usage, or safety.
AI models trained on China’s “core data”, defined as “data concerning national security, the lifeline of the national economy, key public livelihoods, and major public interests”, would also be banned from export. The proposal also covers 12 solar power-related technologies, as well as five biomedicine technologies.
However, open-source technologies and research already in the public domain would generally be excluded from the restrictions.
A spokesperson for the Commerce Ministry said the export rules are aimed at ensuring “the safety and controllability” of AI technology, adding:
“The Chinese government’s necessary management of these technologies aims to solidify the security baseline, prevent misuse and abuse, ensure that AI remains under human control, and promote international governance of AI.”
In September 2026, the US and China made progress towards establishing a formal dialogue on AI risks following talks between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in Washington. Another round of AI-related discussions is planned for November.
At the same time, the US has restricted China's access to advanced semiconductor technology, and China now appears to be tightening its own controls on exports of advanced AI tech.
China has already imposed a temporary registration requirement for companies to register exports of the technologies covered by the proposal. The measure took effect on Friday.
