Nathan Lambert says the US is falling behind China on open models
natolambert · x · 2026-07-23
Nathan Lambert warns the US is falling behind on open models
Nathan Lambert says he has long worried about the US falling behind in open-model development, and that the pain is only beginning.
The post argues that:
- Open models are becoming strategically important.
- China’s open-model ecosystem is gaining momentum while the US is lagging.
- If the US does not find ways to support open model building domestically, the gap will widen further.
The attached image from the ATOM Project makes the same case more forcefully, claiming that America’s AI research leadership was built on open research, that the country is now at risk of losing that lead, and that the US should invest in leading open foundation models at home to rebuild the ecosystem.
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