An illustration of using AI applications on a mobile phone. Photo: VCG

The Chinese Foreign Ministry (FM) and the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Wednesday criticized the US' move of adding dozens of Chinese firms to its so-called Entity List that aims to restrict China's artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced computing capabilities, and vowed to take "necessary measures" to firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.

Asked to comment on the US' move and about China's potential countermeasures, FM spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a regular press briefing that the US action is an abuse of its Entity List and other export controls. "The US falsely accuses China of 'activities contrary to US national security and foreign policy' and uses it as an excuse to impose illicit unilateral sanctions. This is typical hegemonism and a serious violation of international law and the basic norms governing international relations," Guo said. 

The spokesperson further noted that the US action harms the lawful rights and interests of businesses and destabilizes the global industrial and supply chains and China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it. "We call on the US to stop overstretching the concept of national security, stop politicizing trade and sci-tech issues and using them as a weapon and a tool and stop abusing various kinds of sanction lists to hit Chinese companies. China will take necessary steps to firmly safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies," he said.

Also commenting on the US' move on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the MOFCOM also expressed firm opposition. "The US move is not conducive to creating an atmosphere for the two sides to resolve issues through dialogue and cooperation. China urges the US to immediately stop its wrong practices and will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese entities," the spokesperson said.

The US Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security on Tuesday US time announced the addition of 80 entities to the Entity List from China, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Iran and others for activities it claimed to be "contrary to US national security and foreign policy," according to a release from the department. 

Dozens of Chinese entities in the fields of AI, cloud computing, big data and other areas were listed by the US, including Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence (BAAI). 

"We are shocked that a private, non-profit research organization being added to the US Entity List. We strongly oppose the US' wrong decision that is groundless, and request relevant US government agency to withdraw the decision," the BAAI said in a statement sent to the Global Times on Wednesday.

The statement further noted that as a non-profit scientific research institution, the BAAI has always adhered to the principle of open source and openness. All scientific research and technological achievements are openly shared with the world, and it actively participates in international dialogues on AI security to leverage AI to enhance social welfare, it said.

"The latest US move marks an escalation of its long-running effort to contain China's technological rise. It reflects US anxiety over China's rapid development of AI large language models, quantum computing and other technologies," Bao Jianyun, director of the Center for International Political Economy Studies at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

However, further US crackdowns are unlikely to succeed, Bao said. "China's technological breakthroughs are the result of the country's institutional advantages, talent pool and decades of basic research. The US disruptions will not hinder the rapid development momentum of China's tech field in the long run," he said, adding that the aggressive US crackdown on Chinese tech firms could actually prompt them to become more self-reliant and innovative.

In spite of the intensifying US crackdown on China's tech field, Chinese companies continue to make breakthroughs in many areas. AI start-up DeepSeek garnered global attention with the release of its reasoning model R1 at much lower costs than its US competitors, and its openness also drew praise from some US experts. 

"Improvements in efficiency for a general-purpose technology like AI lift all boats," Michael Albert, an AI and computing expert at the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business, said in an article posted on the website of the school when commenting on DeepSeek. "It is extraordinarily exciting to me as someone who works closely with practice to see cutting-edge, open-source models released."

"Technological progress benefits global economic and social development, while US protectionism disrupts markets and undermines international growth," Zhou Mi, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, told the Global Times.

Zhou noted that there are multiple paths to tech innovations, and that the US' restrictions will not change the general trend of technological advancements. "Protectionism does no good to any party including the US itself, and technological development should be market-driven," he said.