China draft would require government approval to export weights of 2T+ parameter models
kimmonismus · x · 2026-10-18
China's commerce ministry has drafted export controls on 23 AI technologies: weights, checkpoints and code of the very largest models (2T+ parameters, 10^26+ FLOPs, or global top 10) would need government approval, while API/web/app access stays untouched.
If enacted, top Chinese labs may no longer freely release their best models, and US/EU teams building on their open weights could feel the impact quickly. The author reads it as a response to US chip controls.
Per the Reuters screenshot, the draft distinguishes overseas deployment of restricted-tech models from API/SaaS access — letting players like DeepSeek and Alibaba keep expanding internationally while Beijing oversees sensitive tech transfers. Reuters reported in July that authorities had discussed restricting overseas access to China's most advanced models with Alibaba, ByteDance and Z.AI.
Related event: China Proposes Export Controls on Advanced AI Models(3 posts)→
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