China proposes export controls on 23 AI technologies

China’s commerce and science ministries put forward a draft that would add 23 AI technologies to the country’s export control list. The proposal covered 40 items in total, with 12 solar items and five biomedicine items also included, and the public can comment until 15 November.

For large models, the draft would cover weights, source code and other core components. Bloomberg reported that the rule would apply to models with at least 2 trillion parameters, or to models ranked in the world’s top 10 on tests such as performance and safety; the draft itself did not name any model.

The proposal also targeted design know-how for AI chips made at 14 nanometres or below, or built through 2.5D or 3D stacking. Some memory chip designs were listed as well.

The ministries said open-source code and published research would be exempt. They also said Chinese firms could continue serving users abroad through apps, websites and APIs, while running a covered model on servers abroad would count as an export; firms using their own cloud servers abroad could receive an automatic licence.

A ministry spokesperson said the rules were intended to prevent misuse and abuse and to ensure AI remained under human control. The ministry also said the plan did not target any country or firm, and a temporary registration rule took effect on 16 October, covering items that had not yet been completed.