Chinese AI Model Matches US Rivals on Security Testing, Exposing Export Control Gap
Source: The Wall Street Journal (paywall)
Zhipu AI's GLM-5.2 matches frontier US models (GPT-4, Claude) on vulnerability detection—a task previously assumed to require closed Western systems—and runs as open-source software available globally. The finding challenges the national security case for restricting Chinese AI exports. The US restricts closed Chinese models on dual-use risk grounds, yet allows open-source models trained on similar architectures and data to circulate freely. Either the export controls are insufficient, or the US must extend them to open-source releases—a move European regulators are approaching differently, and one that raises technical and political obstacles.