World Liberty Financial (CRYPTO: WLFI), the crypto venture backed by President Donald Trump and his family, is collaborating with Hong Kong-based WorldClaw, a platform that offers access to 90 AI models, including 43 from Chinese companies that have drawn scrutiny from the Trump administration over national-security and intellectual-property concerns.
This Hong Kong-based venture provides AI models developed by Chinese tech giants such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA), Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU), and Z.ai, which have been flagged by the Trump admin for national-security and intellectual-property concerns. DeepSeek and Moonshot are also among other Chinese AI models on offer.
WorldClaw accepts USD1 and other stablecoins for its services and allows eligible users to unlock certain plans by locking WLFI tokens. The Trump family, through its stake in World Liberty, generates revenue from the use of these tokens, as per a Reuters report.
However, seven experts in Chinese technology, trade, and government ethics have voiced concerns about this business partnership and the potential profits for Trump through World Liberty.
David Wachsman, a representative for World Liberty, defended the partnership, arguing that WorldClaw operates independently and that many U.S. companies also utilize AI from Chinese tech companies.
A spokesperson for WorldClaw told Reuters that their company “helps American AI companies reach international users” and that “making a model available does not constitute an endorsement of its developer.”
WLFI did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comments.
Trump Administration Targets Chinese Tech
This partnership comes at a time when the Trump administration has imposed new restrictions on Chinese-made humanoid and quadruped robots, as well as connected power inverters, citing national security and cybersecurity risks. The FCC said the devices could create supply-chain vulnerabilities and potentially threaten critical U.S. infrastructure.
Concerns over Chinese open-weight AI models have also grown after Moonshot AI’s Kimi K3 challenged leading U.S. models, prompting the Trump administration to consider tighter restrictions. Meanwhile, Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA), Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR), and Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) have opposed such curbs, warning they could undermine U.S. competitiveness and drive AI innovation abroad.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Login to comment