Draft revision aims to better streamline tech exports

China is moving to strengthen the management of technology exports in its strategic frontier sectors, sending a clear signal of the country's resolve to safeguard national security, protect core technologies and uphold international trade rules while remaining committed to high-level openness, said officials and experts.

As global technological rivalries intensify, the proposed changes are expected to support healthier growth in frontier industries and help Chinese companies expand overseas in a more orderly manner, contributing to a fair and equitable global technology trade order, they added.

The Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Science and Technology issued a notice on Friday soliciting public opinion on proposed adjustments to China's catalog of technologies that are subject to export bans or restrictions.

The draft revision, which covers 40 technologies in artificial intelligence, biomedicine and photovoltaics, prohibits exports of 14 technologies in the three sectors and restricts another 26, while proposing automatic licensing and other facilitation measures in specified cases.

Alongside the public consultation, which runs through Nov 15, the ministries have also introduced temporary pre-export registration requirements, effective immediately and lasting until the revised catalog takes effect.

With export controls in place to varying degrees across major economies, a Commerce Ministry spokesperson said in a statement that the revision is "a routine part of technology trade management" and "does not target any specific country, region or entity".

Cui Fan, a professor of international trade at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, said that as China makes rapid advances in science and technology, "it faces an increasingly complex international environment for technological competition and cooperation".

Artificial intelligence has become a key battleground in global technological competition. According to the Commerce Ministry, the proposed adjustments include 23 key technologies spanning large models, AI agents, computing clusters and information processing.

Zhao Qiuyan, a senior engineer at the China Machinery Industry Information Institute, said it marks "a step forward in China's AI governance, helping strike a better balance between innovation and security".

The ministry spokesperson said the proposed export controls would cover a narrowly defined range of AI technologies, adding that "the vast majority will remain freely exportable" once the revision takes effect.

The security considerations extend to biomedicine, where Chinese drugmakers are gaining wider international recognition for their innovations. The catalog already covers some biomedical technologies, and the draft will add five technologies related to pathogenic microorganisms, cell and gene therapies, as well as small nucleic acid drugs, the spokesperson said.

The draft also proposes adding 12 technologies used in polysilicon, silicon wafer and solar cell manufacturing, covering key stages of photovoltaic production.

The changes come as China's solar industry, a global manufacturing leader central to the clean energy transition, navigates a period of adjustment amid growing competitive pressures, according to the China Photovoltaic Industry Association.

Chen Gang, chairman of Shanghai Aiko Solar Energy Co, said the proposed controls would promote healthier growth in the industry by shifting competition "from price to quality and value", despite possible short-term adjustments for equipment makers.

Ren Qing, a partner at Global Law Office in Beijing, noted that the proposed additions are limited to core, foundational and advanced technologies in the three sectors. "This targeted approach will safeguard national security and development interests without unduly disrupting China's economic and technological cooperation with other countries," he said.

Alongside targeted controls, the draft provides for automatic licensing and other streamlined procedures for eligible AI exports, including open-source releases and overseas joint R&D, and for outbound licensing of specified novel drug-target discovery and validation technologies.

"The measures clarify the boundaries of cooperation while keeping the door open," said Sun Yu, secretary-general of the policy research committee at the China News of Drug Information Association.