National Archives Removes Alibaba AI Tool From Federal Register

The National Archives removed an AI search tool from the Federal Register website on September 16, 2026, after social media users exposed its reliance on Alibaba's Qwen AI model. The tool was designed to help users search through public comments and proposed federal regulations.

The deployment occurred amid heightened tensions between the United States and China. The Federal Bureau of Investigation recently accused Alibaba Group of copying technology from the U.S.-based company Anthropic on an industrial scale, describing the activity as malicious. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington called these allegations unfounded.

While security experts noted that the risk was limited because the tool only processed public data, the incident sparked criticism from U.S. officials. John Moolenaar, chair of the House China Committee, stated that the use of Chinese AI models by federal agencies is not in the national interest. The event highlights a gap between official U.S. government policy regarding Chinese AI and the operational practices of its federal agencies.