BOSTON, Massachusetts: A crypto company backed by U.S. President Donald Trump is working with a Hong Kong-based venture that provides access to artificial intelligence models from Chinese technology companies flagged by his administration over national security concerns.

WorldClaw, founded earlier this year, offers 90 AI models and accepts tokens from Trump-backed World Liberty Financial as payment. A Reuters review found 43 of those models were developed by Alibaba, Baidu, Z.ai and other Chinese companies the Trump administration says pose national security and intellectual property risks. WorldClaw also offers dozens of models from U.S. companies including OpenAI and Anthropic.

There is nothing illegal about World Liberty's collaboration with WorldClaw or WorldClaw's relationships with the Chinese companies. Chinese AI models, which are typically less expensive, are also gaining traction globally, including among U.S. technology companies.

Seven experts on Chinese technology, trade and government ethics told Reuters the collaboration, and the potential profits for Trump through World Liberty, run counter to his administration's stance toward Chinese technology companies.

"As the U.S. government tries to respond to the rise and threat of Chinese AI, it seems hypocritical to go out through WorldClaw to use these tools from China to try and make a bunch of money," said Sam Bresnick, a fellow at Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology.

We could not establish World Liberty's financial arrangements with WorldClaw or how much the Trump family has earned from crypto payments on the platform.

White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said "there are no conflicts of interest" in the relationship and that "President Trump only acts in the best interests of the American public."

World Liberty spokesman David Wachsman said WorldClaw was independent and that major U.S. companies also offer Chinese and American AI. "This is a common and widely accepted approach," he said.

A WorldClaw spokesperson said the company "helps American AI companies reach international users" and that "making a model available does not constitute an endorsement of its developer."

Among the models available are those from Alibaba and Baidu, which the U.S. Defense Department has designated as Chinese military-aligned companies. WorldClaw also offers models from Z.ai, which is on the Commerce Department's entity list, and DeepSeek and Moonshot, which Trump administration officials have accused of stealing intellectual property from U.S. AI rivals.

Alibaba, Baidu and Z.ai have disputed U.S. government determinations that they are aligned with China's military, while the Chinese government has disputed technology-theft claims.

"Alibaba is not a Chinese military company nor part of any military-civil fusion strategy," an Alibaba spokesperson said, calling its Pentagon designation "arbitrary and capricious" and saying the company would sue to demand its removal.

The Trump family owns 38 percent of World Liberty and earns money through the sale or use of its crypto tokens. WorldClaw accepts World Liberty's USD1 stablecoin for its services, among other cryptocurrencies.

World Liberty's head of growth, Ryan Fang, has also been a "helpful external adviser and supporter of WorldClaw," particularly on USD1 adoption, partnerships and expanding access to AI services, WorldClaw said, describing his role as "strictly advisory."

Trump's sons and World Liberty co-founders Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have promoted WorldClaw on X. The Trump family's earnings from World Liberty token sales have totaled more than US$1.4 billion, part of $2.3 billion the family has made from crypto.

WorldClaw says its WorldRouter tool has more than 10,000 users and handles more than 50 million requested tasks daily. Its website says it may share user inputs with companies providing its AI models.

WorldClaw said it takes security seriously and applies privacy and security safeguards to its platform.