Last reviewed: August 2026 · Cadence: monthly (or sooner on major releases) · Centre: AI & Technology · Guide: AI business guide.
How to useStatus legend
Watch listCurrent priorities
TimelineMilestone map
Theme registerControl agenda
ChangelogUpdates
Ops checklistAfter each update
How to use this tracker
- Product/legal owners scan the Watch list monthly; deep-dive only rows that match your role (provider, platform, deployer).
- Status legend: Stable baseline = design programs against it · Active evolution = expect implementing rules/guidance · Monitor = sector or draft movement · Interface = not “AI-only” but often decisive (privacy, trade).
- Not legal advice and not exhaustive. Pair with the business guide for operator checklists.
Watch list — current priorities (Aug 2026)
| Theme | Status | Operator impact | Owner | Related |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Generative AI service rules | Stable baseline + Active evolution | Public GenAI: content safety, training-data legitimacy, security, user terms, assessment/filing path | Product + Legal + Security | B17 GenAI |
| Deep synthesis / synthetic media | Stable baseline | Labelling, misuse prevention, identity themes for face/voice/video tools | Trust & Safety | Labelling |
| Algorithm recommendation | Stable baseline | Filing/transparency and user controls for certain recommendation services | Platform product | B17 rule families |
| AI + personal information | Interface · Active | Prompts, logs, training sets, cross-border inference | Privacy | PIPL · Transfers · B16 tracker |
| Data security / important data | Interface · Monitor | Datasets and logs may be more than “PI”; sector catalogues matter | Cyber + Legal | Data centre |
| Export controls / chips & tools | Interface · Active | Training infrastructure, overseas collab, model-weight movement narratives | Trade + Supply | US export controls · Outbound |
| Sector AI (finance, health, AV, ads) | Monitor | Vertical licences can block launch even if horizontal AI rules are met | Vertical compliance | Sector counsel |
| Comparative regimes (EU AI Act, etc.) | Monitor | Dual-region products need separate control matrices | Global privacy/AI | China AI vs EU AI Act · PIPL vs GDPR |
Milestone map (orientation, not a statute list)
Use as onboarding context for new team members. Dates below are program eras, not filing calendars.
- Cyber & data foundations — CSL / DSL / PIPL stack becomes the default interface for any AI that touches networks, data, or people.
- Algorithm & recommendation era — platforms with recommendation engines face transparency/filing-style governance.
- Deep synthesis era — synthetic audio/video/identity tools require labelling and misuse controls.
- Generative AI era — public GenAI services face comprehensive provider duties and assessment themes.
- Ongoing — implementing standards, app-store enforcement, and sector rules continue to move faster than annual policy reviews.
For “what do we do Monday,” prefer the Watch list and go-live checklist.
Control agenda by role
| Role | Minimum controls to keep current |
|---|---|
| GenAI provider (China public) | Content policy, labelling, data provenance memo, security/filing calendar, Chinese terms, incident channel |
| Enterprise deployer | Use-case register, employee/customer notices, logging retention, vendor/API diligence, human oversight |
| Platform with recommendations | Algorithm inventory, user controls, filing status tracker |
| Cross-border model vendor | China lane vs global lane, transfer pathway, partner white-label clauses |
| Hardware / robotics + AI | Product safety/sector rules + NNN/IP with manufacturers · NNN guide |
Changelog
| Date | Change | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-08 | Tracker launched (v1.0). Watch list and control agenda published; linked to B17 business guide and data privacy stack. | Gives product/legal a single monthly scan page instead of scattered blog posts. |
Next planned refresh: add row-level “source instrument” footnotes as editorial capacity allows; EU AI Act comparison: B19 live.
After each tracker update — internal ops
- [ ] Diff Watch list against your product inventory
- [ ] Open tickets for any new labelling, filing, or data-transfer impacts
- [ ] Update Chinese user terms / model cards if duties changed
- [ ] Brief Trust & Safety and App Store owners
- [ ] Revisit outbound export-control assumptions if chips/tools narrative shifted
- [ ] Record “reviewed on [date]” in your compliance calendar
Related & counsel
AI & tech centre AI business guide Data privacy tracker Find counsel
General information only—not legal advice. Trackers lag primary sources. Verify against official publications and qualified counsel before decisions or filings. China Legal Portal Editorial.