China Denies US Allegations That Moonshot AI Misappropriated Anthropic Technology Amid Rising AI Rivalry

The ongoing technology rivalry between the United States and China has intensified after the Trump administration accused the Chinese artificial intelligence startup Moonshot AI of unlawfully utilizing Anthropic’s proprietary technology to develop its flagship AI model.

These allegations emerged amid claims that Moonshot AI acquired Nvidia AI hardware in violation of US export controls, marking a significant escalation in Washington’s efforts to restrict China’s advancement in cutting-edge AI technologies.

Chinese officials have strongly rejected the accusations, describing them as politically motivated and lacking empirical evidence. They emphasize that China’s AI sector has achieved its progress independently while respecting intellectual property rights in accordance with relevant regulations.

Michael Kratsios, a senior technology official from the Trump administration, elaborated on the US position by stating that intelligence indicates Moonshot AI leveraged Anthropic’s advanced model, Fable, through a technique known as AI distillation. This method involves training new models using outputs generated by more sophisticated systems.

AI distillation can significantly reduce development costs by extracting core functionalities from existing models. However, when done without authorization, it infringes upon intellectual property rights and violates terms of service agreements.

Beijing has dismissed these claims, underscoring its commitment to independent innovation and protection of intellectual property. A spokesperson for the Chinese military in Washington labeled the allegations as unsubstantiated and urged US officials to acknowledge China’s genuine technological advancements rather than undermine its reputation.

The controversy follows Moonshot AI’s recent launch of Kimi K3, a 2.8 trillion parameter business model touted as the world’s largest open-weight AI system. Kimi K3 has become a focal point in discussions about China’s emergence as a formidable competitor in the global AI landscape.

Moonshot AI has highlighted that Kimi K3 improves the conversion of computing power into AI capabilities more efficiently than its predecessors.

In related developments, companies DeepSeek and MiniMax have reportedly conducted over 16 million interactions with Anthropic’s Claude model using nearly 24,000 fake accounts, violating the company’s terms of service.

As of now, Moonshot AI has not issued any public response to the allegations concerning intellectual property misuse.

Despite the dispute, both the United States and China continue to develop commercially viable AI systems. This rivalry is expected to intensify regulatory scrutiny over technology transfers, intellectual property protections, and access to advanced computing hardware.

The unfolding situation underscores the complex interplay between national security concerns, technological innovation, and international trade regulations in the rapidly evolving AI sector.