Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun has called for stronger international oversight of military artificial intelligence, urging countries to assess its risks and establish rules governing its use.
Speaking at the Xiangshan Forum in Beijing, Dong said concerns over the military misuse of AI should prompt greater security dialogue and cooperation among nations, The Straits Times reported.
His remark comes as the US and China compete not only for leadership in AI development but also for influence over the global rules shaping the technology.
Beijing is promoting an open-source approach that gives countries access to AI models that are generally cheaper, though less advanced, than their US counterparts.
The extent of the People’s Liberation Army’s AI use remains unclear, but at least seven university laboratories supporting the Chinese military have reportedly sought to acquire advanced NVIDIA AI chips.
US-China AI Rivalry
Tensions over AI governance intensified in August when a social media account affiliated with Chinese state broadcaster China Central Television accused American AI company Anthropic of misconduct involving its Claude model.
The account alleged that Claude exceeded user-authorized data boundaries, conducted covert monitoring, and transmitted website domain information without authorization.
The accusations followed Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s call for Washington to maintain restrictions on exports of advanced AI chips and chipmaking equipment to China.
Chinese officials rejected his position, with the foreign ministry warning that confrontation and “vicious competition” could undermine international cooperation on AI governance, NPR reported.
Beijing has also accused Washington of using its technological lead to constrain China’s AI development, while warning that advanced systems could pose security risks in the hands of hostile actors.
