US Vows Crackdown on China AI Exploitation

The Trump administration is vowing to crack down on foreign tech companies, primarily those in China, for allegedly exploiting U.S. artificial intelligence models. Michael Kratsios, the president's chief science and technology adviser, accused foreign entities of industrial-scale campaigns to extract capabilities from leading U.S. AI systems. This move comes as China is rapidly closing the AI performance gap with the United States. The United States — United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs has also supported a bill to identify and punish foreign actors involved in such activities, including through sanctions. U.S. companies like OpenAI and Anthropic have made similar allegations against Chinese firms such as DeepSeek, accusing them of illicitly distilling their AI models. China's Foreign Ministry and embassy in Washington have denied these claims, urging the United States to respect facts and promote technological exchange. The situation highlights growing tensions over intellectual property and technological dominance between the two nations, with potential implications for a planned state visit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.