Chinese AI models gain global market share amid US competition

Chinese AI models are rapidly gaining global market share due to their high performance and low costs, creating new pressure in the technological competition with the United States. Data from developer platforms shows a significant surge in token usage for Chinese models in 2026.

On OpenRouter, Chinese models accounted for 57%–67% of token usage in the week ending September 14, 2026, a massive increase from the 6%–13% recorded in February 2026. Similarly, on Vercel, their share rose to 55% in August 2026, up from 11% in January 2026. This usage spans the US, Europe, and the Global South, including 82 countries across Central and South America, Africa, and Asia.

While US models still lead in most performance benchmarks and command higher total spending, Chinese companies such as DeepSeek, Z.ai, and Alibaba have released new models with superior performance in specific tasks like programming. This shift has drawn scrutiny from US lawmakers concerned about technology competition, security, and global economic influence. AI is expected to be a key topic in upcoming discussions between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.