Should AI companies be able to outsource safety?

Rules aimed only at downstream applications can make AI products less safe. Policymakers should hold both model makers and the companies building on them accountable.

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In June, the U.S. government required Anthropic to restrict access to its two newest models by foreign nationals, citing national security and cybersecurity concerns. Unable to verify users’ nationality in real time, Anthropic temporarily withdrew access to the models for all users. A few weeks later, the Chinese company Moonshot AI released its Kimi K3 model, and then published its full model weights. Together, these episodes have reignited a familiar debate: How far can governments go in requiring AI safeguards before they slow innovation or cede ground to foreign rivals?

But that debate is incomplete. It treats regulation as though it occurs in a vacuum, directed at a single monolithic AI company. In reality, AI products are built through........

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