Alibaba bans employees from using Claude Code over security concerns

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has instructed its employees to stop using Anthropic's Claude Code in office environments from July 10, citing security concerns. According to reports, the company's internal review classified the AI coding tool as "high-risk software" over fears that it could contain potential backdoors, prompting Alibaba to add it to its restricted software list.

The move follows growing concerns in China over the security of foreign-developed software and comes amid rising technology tensions between China and the United States. Alibaba has reportedly advised employees to switch to Qoder, a domestic AI coding assistant, for internal work instead.

While Anthropic has not publicly responded to the claims, the decision reflects China's increasing push to rely on homegrown technology solutions.

The ban is expected to affect employees using Claude Code for software development and programming tasks. It also highlights the broader trend of Chinese companies tightening controls over foreign software due to cybersecurity and data protection concerns.

The latest development underscores the growing competition between Chinese and American AI firms as both countries continue to strengthen their domestic technology ecosystems.