Nearly 200 Silicon Valley companies oppose US ban on Chinese open-source AI models

Nearly 200 Silicon Valley companies, including Proton and startup incubator Y Combinator, have signed a letter to the White House through the new 'Little Tech Association' opposing the US government's plan to block Chinese open-source AI models. They argue that cutting off access to these models would harm US startups.

The move comes after the release of Chinese open-source models like Alibaba's Qwen 3.8 and Moonshot AI's Kimi K3, prompting the US government to consider tighter rules. The letter says blocking access would kill competition, strengthen big tech firms, and create a 'tax on intelligence'.

The association specifically asks the US not to ban Qwen 3.8 and Kimi K3, stating that US companies should be able to use them. They warn that a ban won't stop the spread of these models but will only hurt US startups by raising costs and limiting choices.