A draft that includes models, agents and chips
China has proposed adding 40 technologies to the national catalog of products subject to export bans or restrictions. Twenty-three concern artificial intelligence, according to the joint document published in draft form by the Ministries of Commerce and of Science and Technology and reviewed by the Associated Press. The list includes technologies for advanced language models, agents and some processing and memory chips.
The proposal would ban the export of core technologies for large models trained on sensitive national data and for agents intended for particularly sensitive environments, such as defense and critical infrastructure. Some very large models, or models with capabilities considered world-class, could be subject to restrictions. The text does not name individual companies or products, so it would be incorrect to state that a specific model is already banned.
National security enters industrial policy
Beijing justified the initiative with the need to protect security, prevent abuse and maintain human control over AI. The move is part of a broader competition with the United States, which in recent years has limited Chinese access to certain advanced chips and to the machinery needed to produce them. In parallel, the two countries have launched dialogues on AI safety and governance: the draft on controls and the diplomatic engagement are therefore proceeding at the same time.
The proposed measures also cover technologies not related to AI: twelve entries in solar and five in the biomedical sector, including technologies for cell and gene therapies. This shows that the measure concerns the management of knowledge and supply chains considered strategic, not only the export of software or ready-to-use models.
What could change for companies and research
If adopted, restrictions of this kind could affect transfers of expertise, licenses, research collaborations and services developed abroad. For companies operating in multiple countries, it would become important to understand whether the exported technology falls within the catalog and which authorization procedure applies. The concrete scope, however, will depend on the final text and on the authorities’ operational guidance.
A draft does not by itself produce a ban already in force. The news should be read as an indication of the political direction chosen by Beijing, not as a measure already applied to all Chinese models. Still to be verified are the timetable, technical thresholds, exceptions and the way in which open-source or already published technologies will be treated. The competition over AI is thus also played out over who can transfer knowledge across borders and under what conditions.
