Chinese tech giants share algorithms with the Government
Western firms like Meta and Google have resisted similar attempts by the US Government, claiming their algorithms are protected IP.
Chinese internet behemoths including Alibaba, Tencent and TikTok-owner ByteDance have allegedly shared specific details of their proprietary algorithms with Chinese authorities for the first time.
The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) on Friday published a list with information on 30 algorithms that some of the country's leading digital firms use to customise users' feeds and search results.
The list is apparently intended to prevent data misuse, and will be updated regularly.
The CAC asked firms to share details of their algorithms in March this year, in an attempt to improve oversight and help users understand why they see certain content.
The directive came after China's new algorithm legislation went into force the same month, requiring app developers to provide users with the option to reject personalised suggestions.
The CAC also introduced a filing mechanism to help companies disclose their algorithmic information.
The move was seen as part of Beijing's broad regulatory campaign against its once-nimble technology industry. While algorithm technology has contributed to economic growth and increased internet use in China, it has also led to a variety of issues, such as how certain companies use customer data to impose additional fees.
State media has complained that internet platforms use algorithms to infringe user privacy and influence their decisions.
According to the CAC's list, internet search engine Baidu has an algorithm that evaluates the security threats caused by the content posted on its news portal, Encyclopedia, online discussion board Tieba, and other services. The algorithm aids workers in deciding what should be read and what should be deleted.
ByteDance's algorithm for Douyin, China's equivalent of TikTok, determines users' interests based on what they like, dislike, click or comment on.
And on online shopping platform Taobao, users receive product or service recommendations based on their digital footprint and past search data.
Kendra Schaefer, head of tech policy research at Trivium China, told the BBC that the data published by the CAC looked to be at the surface level, and it doesn't appear that the algorithms themselves have been uploaded.
Zhai Wei, executive director at Competition Law Research Center of the East China University of Political Science and Law, said the information submitted to CAC was far more extensive than "what was published for sure."
Algorithms are important for digital platforms as they determine how a certain process will work on a website or mobile app.
Despite pleas for transparency on this issue, Meta and Google parent Alphabet have contended in the US that their algorithms are trade secrets.
In 2020, TikTok owner ByteDance refused to hand over the app's source code when the US government, then led by President Donald Trump, pressed the company to sell TikTok's US operations.
In response to Trump's action, Beijing updated a catalogue of technologies with export restrictions or bans, including artificial intelligence interactive interfaces and personalised information suggestion service technology based on data analysis.