Beijing Breaks Its Silence on U.S. Allegations of AI Model Distillation

China's Ministry of Commerce has issued its first comprehensive response to U.S. allegations of AI model distillation, defending the practice as legitimate industry standard and accusing Washington of weaponising technology policy. Beijing cited U.S. company support for open-weight models and alleged American distillation of Chinese models as evidence of hypocrisy, whilst warning of countermeasures if Chinese interests are harmed.

This Wire brief sits within Fusion42's coverage of AI Frontier Models. Wire is Fusion42's founder-focused intelligence feed: each story is connected to the funds and startups it names — every one with a live profile on Raise or Scout — so founders can follow the capital and the momentum behind the headline rather than just the headline itself. Wire analysis is one of the live surfaces Arthur reasons over.