Over the past two years, the U.S. government has limited the export of high-end AI chips to China, emphasizing the need to curb the military capabilities of China.
However, accessing such chips or advanced AI models via the cloud does not breach U.S. regulations, as these rules only govern the export or transfer of commodities, software, or technology.
A review by Reuters of over 50 tender documents released in the past year on publicly accessible Chinese databases indicated that at least 11 Chinese entities have sought access to restricted U.S. technologies or cloud services.
Among these, four specifically identified Amazon Web Services (AWS) as their cloud service provider, although they obtained these services through Chinese intermediary firms instead of directly from AWS.
The tender documents, reported by Reuters for the first time, illustrate the diverse strategies Chinese entities are using to obtain advanced computing power and access generative AI models. They also highlight how U.S. companies are leveraging China's increasing demand for computing resources.
An Amazon cloud business spokesperson stated, AWS complies with all applicable U.S. laws, including trade laws, regarding the provision of AWS services both within and outside of China.
According to research firm Canalys, AWS commands nearly one-third of the global cloud infrastructure market. In China, AWS ranks as the sixth-largest cloud service provider, as per research firm IDC.
Shenzhen University allocated 200,000 yuan ($27,996) for an AWS account to access cloud servers powered by Nvidia A100 and H100 chips for an unspecified initiative, as detailed in a March tender document. This service was accessed via an intermediary, Yunda Technology Ltd Co, according to the document.
The U.S. has prohibited exports of these Nvidia chips, which are essential for powering large language models (LLMs) like OpenAI's ChatGPT.
Both Shenzhen University and Yunda Technology did not respond to inquiries for comments. Nvidia also refrained from commenting on Shenzhen University's expenditures or any transactions involving other Chinese entities.
Zhejiang Lab, a research institution developing its own LLM, GeoGPT, indicated in an April tender document its intention to spend 184,000 yuan on AWS cloud computing services, as its AI model lacked sufficient computing power from domestic provider Alibaba.
A spokesperson for Zhejiang Lab stated that the purchase did not proceed but did not provide reasons for this decision or how they fulfilled their LLM's computing power needs. Alibaba's cloud division, Alicloud, did not respond to a request for comments.
Reuters was unable to determine whether the purchase was completed.
Currently, the U.S. government is seeking to tighten regulations to limit access through the cloud.
This loophole has been a concern of mine for years, and we are long overdue to address it, Michael McCaul, chair of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, expressed to Reuters, referring to the remote access of advanced U.S. computing capabilities through the cloud by foreign entities.
In April, legislation was introduced in Congress to authorize the commerce department to regulate remote access to U.S. technology, although it remains uncertain if and when this will be enacted.
A spokesperson from the commerce department stated that it is collaborating closely with Congress and seeking additional resources to enhance our existing controls that prevent PRC companies from accessing advanced AI chips via remote cloud computing.
Additionally, the commerce department proposed a rule in January requiring U.S. cloud computing services to verify users of large AI models and report to regulators when these users employ U.S. cloud services to train large AI models capable of malicious cyber-enabled activity.
This rule, which has yet to be finalized, would also empower the commerce secretary to impose restrictions on customers.
An AWS spokesperson mentioned, "We are aware that the commerce department is considering new regulations, and we comply with all applicable laws in the countries where we operate.
Cloud demand in China
Chinese organizations are pursuing access to Microsoft's cloud services.
In April, Sichuan University announced through a tender document that it was developing a generative AI platform and planned to acquire 40 million Microsoft Azure OpenAI tokens to facilitate the project. A subsequent procurement document from May revealed that Sichuan Province Xuedong Technology Co Ltd was the supplier of these tokens.
Microsoft did not provide a response to inquiries. Similarly, Sichuan University and Sichuan Province Xuedong Technology did not comment on the purchase.
OpenAI stated that its services are not available in China and that Azure OpenAI operates according to Microsoft's policies, without addressing the tenders directly.
The University of Science and Technology of China's (USTC) Suzhou Institute of Advanced Research, in a March tender document, indicated a desire to lease 500 cloud servers, each equipped with eight Nvidia A100 chips, for an unspecified purpose.
This tender was fulfilled by Hefei Advanced Computing Center Operation Management Co Ltd, as indicated in an April procurement document, although the document did not identify the cloud service provider, and Reuters could not confirm it.
USTC was placed on a US export control list known as the 'Entity List' in May due to its acquisition of US technology for quantum computing, which could potentially benefit China's military and nuclear program.
USTC and Hefei Advanced Computing Center did not respond to requests for comment.
Expanding beyond restricted AI chips, Amazon has provided Chinese entities with access to not only advanced AI chips but also to cutting-edge AI models like Anthropic's Claude, which they might otherwise be unable to access, as indicated by public posts, tenders, and marketing materials reviewed by Reuters.
Chu Ruisong, President of AWS Greater China, mentioned at a generative AI conference in Shanghai in May that "Bedrock offers a range of leading LLMs, including prominent closed-source models such as Anthropic's Claude 3," referring to the cloud platform.
In various Chinese-language communications aimed at AWS developers and clients, Amazon promoted the opportunity to explore "world-class AI models" and listed Chinese gaming company Source Technology as one of its clients using Claude.
Amazon maintains dedicated sales teams for Chinese clients both within China and abroad, according to two former company executives.
Following Reuters' inquiries, Amazon updated numerous posts on its Chinese-language platforms to indicate that some services were not available in its China cloud regions. It also removed several promotional posts, including the one mentioning Source Technology. Amazon did not provide a reason for these changes and did not respond to further queries.
An AWS spokesperson noted that "Amazon Bedrock customers are bound by Anthropic's end user license agreement, which restricts access to Claude in China via both Amazon's Bedrock API and Anthropic's own API."
Anthropic confirmed that it does not support or permit access to Claude from within China.
However, subsidiaries or divisions of Chinese-headquartered companies may use Claude if the subsidiary is based in a supported region outside of China, an Anthropic spokesperson added.
Source Technology did not provide a comment.
