There’s an article from yesterday I think it was stratchery where they say it’s also because the Chinese open source models are better because they don’t have to play by the no-distilling rules that the western models have to honour.
That's been a common claim, but I don't think I've seen anyone provide actual evidence.
Haven’t read it yet but here it is:
https://stratechery.com/2026/whos-afraid-of-chinese-models/