China Releases 5 AI Models in 8 Weeks: Professor Kim Sang-bae Analyzes the US-China Hegemony War

297th Issues with the Teacher>

The reality of China Shock 2.0: Intensifying AI hegemony competition

China releases 5 new AI models in 8 weeks, a speed war of 'China Tech' chasing the US... Professor Kim Sang-bae of Seoul National University

Broadcast: Sunday, September 20, 2026, at 7:10 PM on KBS 1TV

Last July, the open-weight model 'Kimi K3' from China's Moonshot AI sent shockwaves through the global AI industry, including US Big Tech. We examine how Chinese AI was able to develop and commercialize frontier models at such a rapid pace despite strong US semiconductor export regulations and technology controls.

Chinese AI is chasing the US with an aggressive cost-effectiveness and open-weight strategy. The AI competition is now expanding beyond model performance into a hegemony struggle over the entire AI ecosystem, including semiconductors, data, talent and power, and platforms and robots.

In 'Issues with the Teacher>', we examine the background of China's AI growth and the strategies of China Tech, and seek response strategies for South Korea amidst the intensifying US-China AI hegemony competition. The speaker for the 297th episode, digital international politics expert Professor Kim Sang-bae of the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University, analyzes the underside of the US-China AI competition based on his expertise as the Director of the Center for Future World Politics, Seoul National University and President of the Korean Association of Information and World Politics.

Surging Chinese AI technology: Recently in China, the AI development competition is accelerating to the point where a phenomenon known as '5 models in 8 weeks' has emerged, with five AI models appearing in just eight weeks. Major companies, including Moonshot AI's 'Kimi K3', DeepSeek, ByteDance, Alibaba, and Z.ai, are successively unveiling new models, rapidly narrowing the technology gap with the US.

In particular, Chinese AI is gaining attention not only for its development speed but also for its performance and price competitiveness. Kimi K3, which served as the starting signal, is highly evaluated in areas such as coding, long-duration tasks, and agent functions that perform tasks autonomously, based on its large-scale parameters and long context processing capabilities. Chinese AI is emerging as a key competitor in the global AI market by rapidly catching up with the US.

Directly verifying Chinese AI technology: How was China Shock 2.0 possible?

In 'Issues with the Teacher>', Professor Kim directly tests Kimi K3 to examine the current state of Chinese AI technology. While Kimi K3 showed strengths in compressing and organizing information, its performance could not be definitively concluded from a single test alone.

In response to US sanctions, China is building an independent ecosystem ranging from semiconductors to AI, cloud, and robots, and is aiming to preoccupy global standards through open-weights. However, reliability issues stemming from political censorship and information control remain challenges that Chinese AI must overcome.

Intensifying US-China hegemony competition triggered by China Shock 2.0

Through WAIC 2026, Professor Kim explains the rise of 'Physical AI', which combines AI and robots, and China's moves to strengthen its AI leadership. He analyzes that as the US also moves to check China by consolidating AI and semiconductor supply chains with its allies, the US-China AI competition is expanding beyond technology into a hegemony competition surrounding national security and the international order.

The danger of embodied AI: How to prepare for a future that has not yet arrived

As the combination of AI and robots accelerates, new security threats such as physical harm caused by hacking and malfunctions are emerging. The US is also expanding the US-China technology competition into the field of robotics by strengthening regulations on Chinese-made robots and autonomous technologies.

Accordingly, Professor Kim suggests, "As the US-China AI hegemony competition intensifies, South Korea must not settle for only semiconductor competitiveness, but must prepare 'Insight into the Times' to accurately read the era, 'Self-Strengthening' to secure its own AI technological capabilities, and 'Leveraging the Situation' strategies to maximize national interests between the US and China."

The 297th episode of KBS 1TV 'Issues with the Teacher>', titled 'The reality of China Shock 2.0: Intensifying AI hegemony competition', will be broadcast on Sunday, September 20, 2026, at 7:10 PM. After the broadcast, it can be rewatched through the KBS website (www.kbs.co.kr), Wavve, and the YouTube channels 'KBS Culture' and 'KBS Documentary'.

(Photo provided = KBS 1TV 'Issues with the Teacher')

◆ At a Glance

· Publishing Institution: KBS

· Category: Issues with the Teacher

· Distribution: September 17, 13:57

Source: KBS Press Release

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