DeepSeek and MiniMax have completed registration under China's draft AI technology export rules and finished the procedures to open-source their models and license them for overseas use, according to Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV. The two companies are the first AI developers publicly confirmed to have cleared the process, which covers 23 AI-related technologies Beijing proposed bringing under export control last week.
China's Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Science and Technology opened public comment on October 16 on a revised Catalog of Technologies Prohibited or Restricted from Export. The draft covers large language models, AI agents, computing clusters, AI chip design and high-speed interconnect technology for computing clusters. Companies must register covered transactions, including transfers of technology ownership, licensing abroad, and ownership or control changes involving foreign entities, with the Ministry of Commerce before carrying them out.
The rules target technology transfers, not commercial services. Overseas access to Chinese models through APIs, official websites, mobile apps and software-as-a-service products falls outside the controls, even when those services run on restricted models. A Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said open-source AI releases would qualify for accelerated automatic licensing, which could allow exports as soon as they are reported.
Key facts
- 01DeepSeek and MiniMax are the first AI companies publicly confirmed to complete registration under China's draft AI export rules.
- 02The draft catalog, opened for comment on October 16, covers 23 AI technologies including LLMs, agents and computing clusters.
- 03Overseas access through APIs, websites, apps and SaaS products is excluded from the export controls.
- 04Open-source AI releases qualify for accelerated automatic licensing, a Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said.
- 05AI agents usable in critical infrastructure, defense or core government affairs would be prohibited from export.
The Yuyuan Tantian post said "AI companies can continue their commercialisation efforts as usual" and that the catalog aims to "define boundaries rather than simply restrict the export of AI technology." It said most AI technologies would remain freely exportable once the rules take effect, and it contrasted Beijing's approach with Washington's targeted export bans.
The draft sets out tiers. Large models trained on core data and offered as services abroad would be prohibited from export, while models trained on important data would be restricted. AI agents that meet certain performance levels would be restricted, and prohibited when used or usable in highly sensitive settings such as critical infrastructure, defense and core government affairs. Chinese financial coverage of the draft describes quantitative criteria that include parameter counts above 2 trillion and a global top-ten capability ranking.
Technologies already public through open-source releases or academic papers are excluded from the catalog. Open-sourcing, overseas computing centers, overseas chip tape-out and joint research and development receive automatic "file and go" licensing under the draft.
DeepSeek and MiniMax have kept shipping open models through the process. DeepSeek updated V4.1 Flash and open-sourced its internal inference framework, and MiniMax released M3.1 as open source.
Liu Hongmei, a lawyer at Beijing Dacheng Law Offices who took part in preliminary assessment discussions on the rules, said existing overseas footprints and business plans will not be disrupted once the rules take effect, because restricted technologies can still be licensed. Authorities began preparing the rules in the first half of the year and consulted research institutions, industry associations and leading companies.
The registrations come as the US weighs further limits on chip and chipmaking equipment exports. Earlier this week the US Department of Homeland Security ordered federal civilian agencies to remove DeepSeek, an order Beijing called discriminatory. China has updated its export catalog before, adding algorithms in 2020, and Beijing previously forced the unwinding of Meta's acquisition of AI agent startup Manus.
The 23-item catalog is still at the public comment stage, though the registration provisions took effect immediately for technologies within its scope.
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