China works on AI safety benchmark as regulators target large model risks
State-led initiative addresses AI concerns such as data leaks and hallucinations, as Beijing joins global efforts to enhance oversight of generative models
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has started building a safety benchmark to evaluate artificial intelligence models, as regulators in the United States and Europe strengthen oversight of AI security.
The MIIT-led National Industrial Information Security Development Research Centre is now recruiting companies and experts to co-build the benchmark, with applications due on Tuesday, according to a notice published on Monday.
The institute said that current frameworks fail to meet complex safety-governance needs, requiring a standardised testing platform to support industrial compliance.
The new benchmark will evaluate generative AI across six core dimensions: content safety, value alignment, robustness, fairness, privacy protection and trustworthiness, according to the notice. A hybrid benchmarking methodology will be designed to explicitly cover 31 specific safety risks across five major categories.
This state-led technical approach comes as global regulators have been putting extra emphasis on AI safety as the technology advances.