Global: China Greenlights Over 40 AI Models for Public Use in the Last Six Months

In a concerted effort to narrow the AI development gap with the U.S., China has achieved a significant milestone by approving more than 40 artificial intelligence models for public use in the first half-year since the initiation of the approval process, as reported by the Chinese state-backed Securities Times.

Last week, regulators granted approvals for a total of 14 large language models (LLMs), marking the fourth batch of approvals, which included prominent recipients such as Xiaomi Corp and 4Paradigm.

The initiation of the requirement for tech companies to seek approval for public use of their LLMs commenced in August of the previous year. This regulatory framework reflects China’s strategic approach to AI development, emphasizing control and oversight.

The first batch of AI model approvals was granted in August, with major players like Baidu, Alibaba, and ByteDance among the early recipients. Subsequent batches followed in November and December, with the latest approvals announced this month. While the government has not publicly disclosed the detailed list of approved companies for public scrutiny, Securities Times reported that more than 40 AI models have received approval.

China’s tech companies have been on an accelerated journey to develop AI products, particularly in response to the global impact of OpenAI’s chatbot ChatGPT in 2022.