Chinese tech giant Alibaba is reportedly banning its employees from using Anthropic’s programming tool Claude Code starting July 10, according to multiple reports cited in coverage of the development.
The reported restriction comes as Anthropic has already moved to limit access to its AI models by Chinese companies and foreign entities controlled by them. The company has also been working to close potential loopholes that could allow users in China to access its systems, according to the report.
A Reddit post cited in the reporting suggested that some of these measures included a version of Claude Code capable of identifying users from China. In response, Anthropic researcher Thariq Shihipar said in a post on X that the tool was part of an experiment launched in March aimed at preventing account abuse from unauthorized resellers and protecting against model distillation, a process in which one AI system is trained using outputs from another.
Shihipar said the company had since implemented stronger safeguards and had been planning to discontinue that experimental approach. He added that the earlier system was intended as a temporary measure to address misuse concerns.
According to the reports, Alibaba has now classified Claude Code as high-risk software and instructed employees to discontinue its use. Staff are instead being directed to use the company’s own AI coding tool, Qoder, as a replacement within internal workflows.
The move reflects increasing segmentation in access to advanced artificial intelligence tools, particularly between US-based developers and Chinese technology firms, amid tightening controls on model usage and cross-border deployment.
Anthropic’s restrictions on Chinese entities form part of broader efforts by AI developers to regulate access to their systems and prevent unauthorised use. At the same time, Chinese technology companies have been accelerating the development of domestic alternatives, including proprietary coding and generative AI tools designed to reduce reliance on foreign platforms.
The reported ban by Alibaba adds to a growing list of corporate policies shaping how AI tools are accessed and deployed across different jurisdictions, as companies navigate regulatory, security and competitive concerns in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence sector.
