China has hit back at the latest warnings from top US executives in the artificial intelligence sector, accusing them of spreading fear and engaging in vicious competition. The pushback follows the publication of a 3,800-word essay by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who stated that the pace of improvement in AI models needs to be slowed down. His remarks were endorsed by OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Elon Musk, and Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis.
Amodei’s essay, ‘We Must Pace the Frontier’, said democratic nations must not be naive about their dealings with China, as the Chinese Communist Party would use AI to gain a military advantage over democracies, potentially leading to AI drone swarms. He said the West must maintain its lead in AI over autocracies and outlined measures to prevent China from achieving geopolitical dominance.
‘West must maintain its AI lead’
These measures include restricting exports of the most powerful AI chips or equipment used to make advanced semiconductors to China, limiting data access due to Chinese AI companies’ alleged practice of copying advanced US AI models, and enhancing AI companies’ security to prevent theft of their model weights, which are the core intellectual property of an AI.
Amodei proposed slowing down China’s AI progress to widen the tech gap, then seeking conditional negotiations with Beijing. This infuriated the Chinese Communist Party, with state media outlets and government spokespeople accusing the US tech sector of attempting to wage a “silent AI Cold War” to contain Chinese technological growth.
‘Tech is now a battleground for power rivalry’
China Fires Back
Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a media briefing in Beijing that fear and confrontation will only disrupt the process of global AI governance and serve no one’s interests. Guo said AI development affects humanity’s common well-being and urged all nations to favor an “open, inclusive, and ethical” framework instead of dividing the sector.
The head of China’s spy agency warned that artificial intelligence poses a threat to the country’s national security, as foreign powers could potentially use the technology to threaten social order. Minister of State Security Chen Yixin wrote in an article published online that “hostile forces” were abusing generative AI technologies to spread harmful information, directly threatening China’s political security and institutional security.
Chen stated that AI is now the main battleground for global technological competition and a new track for major power strategic rivalry. He singled out Anthropic’s Claude Mythos and OpenAI’s ChatGPT-5.5-Cyber for their advanced hacking capabilities that potentially pose serious risks to China’s critical information infrastructure.
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Chinese leader Xi Jinping is due to meet US President Donald Trump in Washington this month, with AI governance and safety set to be part of their discussions. The US-Iran war has demonstrated AI’s key role in the military, with better technology offering battlefield advantages, Chen said.
US China Tensions Rise
Beijing rejected reports that Chinese entities supplied Tehran with satellite images of a military base housing US troops in Jordan. The reports related to July 17 missile strikes launched by Iran on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. US President Donald Trump sought to downplay the reports, which could deepen tensions ahead of a planned visit by Chinese leader Xi Jinping to the White House on September 24.
As the US and China engage in a war of words over AI, the technology is becoming increasingly important in the global economy. The use of AI in various industries, such as finance and healthcare, is growing rapidly, and countries are competing to develop and deploy the technology. The US and China are among the leaders in AI development, and their rivalry is likely to shape the future of the technology.
Global Markets React
Oil prices jumped on Monday as Saudi Arabia closed a key pipeline amid the Middle East war, fuelling worries about high inflation. As crude futures rose, US average diesel prices were also increasing, reaching a new record high above $6.0 a gallon. The expected Fed hike at a policy meeting set for Wednesday compounded a fresh selloff in technology stocks across Asia but helped strengthen the dollar.
European stock markets were mostly lower, though London managed to advance, helped by gains for heavyweight oil firms. “Oil and AI fears are causing a double headache for investors, with bond yields rising again and a loss of momentum on equity markets,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell. The US Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates this week, which could have a significant impact on the global economy.
Markets see a high probability of a hike, with cumulative tightening assumed by year-end, said Chris Weston, an analyst at Pepperstone. Expectations for a series of increases have weighed on equity markets, particularly tech firms that rely on debt to finance their vast AI investments. Tokyo-listed tech investment titan SoftBank plunged, while chipmaker Kioxia shed more than 6%. South Korea’s SK Hynix and Samsung were also sharply lower, along with TSMC in Taipei. Brent North Sea Crude was up at $107.71 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate was up at $102.90 per barrel.
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