America’s Open-Model Paradox

Sequoia · 2 months ago · 28 ● 75 sources

America’s use of Chinese open models has become a major dependency chain for Western AI startups and labs, including using Chinese models as teachers and synthetic-data sources for post-training. In ATOM’s Report, Qwen’s share of new open-model fine-tunes and adaptations rose from 1% in January 2024 to 69% by February 2026. The article argues this dependence should be replaced with a lawful domestic “teacher” route and added enforcement to raise the cost of foreign distillation, so Western firms can build cheaper, ownable models without relying on China’s open layer.