US government website used AI search tool from China that FBI said copied Anthropic

A US government website, the Federal Register, briefly used an AI search tool powered by Alibaba's Qwen model, despite the FBI accusing Alibaba of maliciously copying US rival Anthropic's technology. The tool was taken down after social media posts highlighted its presence, raising questions about the US government's consistency in messaging on Chinese AI models.

A US government website, the Federal Register, briefly deployed an AI search tool powered by Alibaba's Qwen model, despite the FBI accusing Alibaba of maliciously copying US rival Anthropic's technology. The tool was available on Wednesday and was taken down after social media posts highlighted its presence. The incident raises questions about the US government's consistency in messaging on Chinese AI models, as Washington warns of the tech threat from China. AI experts said the use of the Chinese tool may not have posed national security risks, but it highlighted a disconnect between US policy and agency actions. The Federal Register website provides a daily list of newly proposed regulations and offered the Qwen model as a tool to browse public comments. Qwen is an open-weight model, meaning key components are publicly available. The FBI declined to comment, and the National Archives and White House did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington said the allegations of copying were unfounded.