China already leads the AI race with 1,500 models

In a surprising twist in the global technology race, new official data reveals that China has developed more than 1,500 large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) models. This figure represents 40% of the global total, positioning Beijing as the undisputed leader in terms of numbers and signaling a shift in power that has largely gone unnoticed.

While media attention has focused on the advances of generative artificial intelligence in the United States, China has been executing a massive scale strategy that has catapulted it to the top of the global AI race, at least in one crucial metric: the number of models developed.

According to a report by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT), a government institution, China now has more than 1,500 large-scale AI models , out of a global total of 3,755. This numerical dominance is a stark indicator of Beijing's ambition and ability to execute in the most defining technology sector of our era.

The data presented at an international forum in Shanghai goes beyond AI models and paints a picture of a technological ecosystem in full swing:

• Model Leadership: China owns approximately 40% of all major AI models globally.
• Business Ecosystem: The country is home to more than 5,100 AI-focused companies, equivalent to 15% of the global total.
• Unicorn Factory: Of these companies, 71 are considered “unicorns” (valued at more than $1 billion), representing 26% of all AI unicorns on the planet.

Yu Xiaohui, president of CAICT, asserted that "China's AI ecosystem has taken shape," highlighting the rapid evolution from basic models to practical applications. This is not simply a race for quantity, but a deliberate strategy to industrialize AI at an unprecedented speed and scale.

China's strategy isn't focused on creating a single "ChatGPT killer," but rather on fostering a hypercompetitive environment where thousands of models are tested, applied, and perfected across a wide range of industries. The most innovative Chinese unicorns focus on critical areas such as:

• Major linguistic models
• Autonomous driving
• Intelligent robotics
• Computer chips

This “quantity has its own quality” approach could allow China to accelerate the practical integration of AI into its economy much faster than the West, which often focuses on more theoretical breakthroughs and a smaller number of very high-profile models.

This technological advancement is part of an ideological struggle over how AI should be governed. Chinese Premier Li Qiang has proposed that AI become an "international public good" and advocated for the creation of a global body to prevent "technological monopolies" and foster cooperation. This position contrasts with that of the United States, which has focused on reducing regulations to accelerate innovation in its own companies.

The revelation of these figures could represent a "Sputnik moment" for the West, a wake-up call about the risk of falling behind not in fundamental research, but in the mass industrial application of artificial intelligence. The question is no longer whether China will become an AI superpower, but what its current status means for the world.