Chinese military researchers tap U.S. AI models to train defense systems

Chinese military researchers have used outputs from U.S. AI models by OpenAI and Anthropic to train domestic defense systems, according to a review of over 80 Chinese academic papers and patents. The practice, known as 'model distillation,' allows Chinese institutions to develop specialized AI systems locally despite U.S. restrictions on advanced chips and technology.

Beijing – Chinese military researchers have used outputs from leading U.S. artificial intelligence models developed by OpenAI and Anthropic to train domestic AI systems to advance China’s defense capabilities, according to a review of more than 80 Chinese academic papers and patents. The previously unreported findings offer a rare glimpse into how military and security-linked institutions in China are leveraging cutting-edge U.S. AI models as a shortcut to developing specialized systems of their own, despite Washington’s efforts to restrict Beijing’s access to advanced chips and other strategic technologies. The documents show widespread use of a technique known as “model distillation,” in which outputs from a powerful AI system are used to train smaller, specialized models that can be deployed locally without the enormous computing requirements needed to build frontier AI systems from scratch. The review of the papers and patents, which included research compiled by the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation, showed distillation is widely used by researchers linked to the People’s Liberation Army and other military institutions.