https://en.people.cn/n3/2026/0328/c90000-20441055.html

According to Sam Daws, Oxford University, China’s open-source AI ecosystem has lowered entry barriers for developers across the Global South. It provides low-cost and integrated full-stack solutions that enable sovereign AI development.

According to Daws, without deliberate intervention, the concentration of AI infrastructure and talent in advanced economies will widen existing inequalities. The Global South risks becoming a consumer of AI technologies rather than a co-creator. This dynamic threatens to entrench technological dependency for generations.

China’s open-source AI models have made a significant contribution to universal access to artificial intelligence technologies worldwide. As only a handful of countries have developed their own large language models, many nations are eager to adopt open-source models as a foundational layer — a move that is particularly valuable for developing countries, where critical gaps in AI development persist, Xue added.

Some of these nations still lack basic infrastructure, such as reliable electricity and internet access. Through initiatives like the Belt and Road, China is well positioned to provide the necessary support and services to bridge these gaps, according to the professor.

Data from OpenRouter, a top global AI platform, showed that API calls, or user visits, to Chinese large models began surpassing U.S. levels in February, highlighting China’s rising influence in the global AI ecosystem. Chinese models occupy three of the top five spots globally by usage — MiniMax’s M2.5, Moonshot’s Kimi K2.5, and DeepSeek’s V3.2 — mainly driven by their high cost-performance ratio, according to the platform.

China is actively promoting global AI governance. In 2023, China launched the Global AI Governance Initiative at the 78th UN General Assembly to enhance international cooperation on AI capacity building.