China’s AI model developers, optical-module makers and warehouse-robot suppliers are taking different routes to reach global markets
Driven by a global surge in AI spending and fierce competition at home, Chinese tech companies are rapidly expanding their international footprint, not just via physical supply chains, but increasingly through cloud-based software and foundation models.
The broader push aligns with recent customs data from the first half of 2026 showing a sharp rise in physical tech exports. Integrated-circuit exports nearly doubled in value to US$177.3 billion, a 96 per cent year-on-year surge heavily inflated by global chip price hikes.
Meanwhile, exports of automatic data-processing equipment jumped over 41 per cent to US$138.1 billion, and industrial-robot shipments climbed over 18 per cent to US$929 million across 141 countries and regions.
However, corporate disclosures reveal a far broader dynamic beyond physical goods: mainland Chinese firms are carving out key positions across both the software and hardware layers of the global AI boom.
Shanghai-based AI lab MiniMax generated US$57.7 million, or 73 per cent of its total revenue, outside mainland China in 2025 – up from US$21.3 million a year earlier, according to its financial statements.
By the end of 2025, it had cumulatively served more than 214,000 enterprise customers and developers from over 100 countries and regions. Its flagship M2 model became the first Chinese model on OpenRouter to cross 50 billion in daily token consumption, the company said.