The Pesky Toad Logo

The Pesky Toad

The Pescadero Perspective

This story has rotated off the live feed but the permalink stays available for sharing and search.

news Scmp World 2026-04-24

US Threatens Crackdown on China's AI 'Distillation' Copycats

The Trump administration threatened protective action against the US AI industry regarding 'distillation' by Chinese rivals. Analysts predict this warning could eliminate weaker competitors within China's AI sector.


The administration of Donald Trump has threatened action to shield the US artificial intelligence industry from being “distilled” by Chinese rivals, in a move analysts say could weed out weaker players in China’s AI sector within a year. In a memo released on Thursday, Michael Kratsios, the science and technology adviser to the US president, warned that “surreptitious, unauthorised distillation campaigns” were enabling foreign entities – mainly in China – to release models that appear to match.....

Support Your Local Toad

The Pesky Toad is free and ad-light. If you find it useful, toss a few pesos in the tip jar to help keep the servers running and the satire flowing.

$

MXN · Minimum $10