ET logo

    What is model distillation? The AI technique at the centre of the US-China technology battle

    Model distillation, a long-established artificial intelligence (AI) training technique, has emerged as the latest flashpoint in the growing technology rivalry between the United States and China. While the method helps developers build smaller, cheaper AI models, US companies have accused some Chinese firms of using it to extract capabilities from proprietary AI systems without permission….

    Read More
    Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that sanctions and trade-limiting entity-list designations are on the table.

    How to Beat China and Make AI Safe

    In the past six weeks, America’s most protected artificial-intelligence model, Anthropic’s Fable 5, was jailbroken on release, temporarily switched off by a letter from the Trump administration, and dethroned on leader boards by a Chinese model, Kimi K3. Moonshot AI, K3’s maker, released the powerful model in mid-July; K3’s “weights”—the trillions of numbers that store…

    Read More