The strategy of “Singapore washing”, where Chinese artificial intelligence startups relocate their headquarters to the city-state to attract Western capital and bypass US export controls, is facing severe pushback from Beijing. The recent departure of MiroMind, an AI startup founded by Chen Tianqiao, underscores the escalating tension between ambitious founders seeking global markets and a government determined to retain core technological assets. According to the Seoul Economic Daily, MiroMind has withdrawn all its staff from China, relocating operations to Singapore and Redwood City, California, despite explicit warnings from Chinese authorities.
The Chinese government reportedly cautioned MiroMind against “smuggling core talent and research results abroad.” The startup’s AI program is capable of “deep reasoning”, a capability Beijing views as strategically vital and sought to prevent from leaking to the United States. By transforming itself into a US-based firm, MiroMind aims to pursue unhindered technological development and attract international investment, a path increasingly fraught with regulatory peril for companies originating in China.
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The Failure of “Singapore Washing”
MiroMind’s drastic relocation highlights the vulnerability of the “Singapore washing” model. The practice gained prominence as startups sought to obscure their Chinese origins to secure Nvidia chips and US venture capital. However, recent events demonstrate that simply changing a corporate address is insufficient to escape Beijing’s jurisdiction. The case of Manus AI serves as a stark warning. EastFrontier reported how founders Xiao Hong and Ji Yichao were subjected to exit bans last month while authorities investigated whether the company complied with export controls when it shut down its China operations in December 2025 and was subsequently sold to Meta.
Manus AI had moved its headquarters to Singapore in June 2025, precisely to facilitate the importation of restricted hardware and attract foreign investment. The subsequent exit bans reveal that Beijing views the transfer of AI talent and intellectual property as a matter of national security, regardless of a company’s legal domicile. Lizzi Lee, a fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, noted that the Manus case has exposed the fundamental weakness of this relocation strategy, proving that the Chinese government retains significant leverage over founders and their technology.
The situation presents a complex “double standard” for Chinese AI firms. While Beijing actively encourages domestic companies to expand overseas and capture global market share, as seen with ByteDance’s TikTok and MiniMax’s international revenue success, it strictly prohibits the complete departure of core research and talent. ByteDance, for instance, spun off TikTok with headquarters in Singapore and Los Angeles but maintained its critical engineering and algorithmic operations in Beijing.
The New Reality for AI Founders
For Chinese AI founders, the path to global scale is increasingly narrow. Matthias Hendriks, a Singapore-based AI adviser, observed that to access Western capital, Chinese AI entrepreneurs will likely have to establish their companies overseas from the outset, rather than migrating an existing domestic operation. This shift could lead to brain drain, with top-tier talent launching their ventures outside China to avoid the regulatory entanglements that ensnared MiroMind and Manus AI.
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The tightening grip on AI startups reflects Beijing’s broader strategic calculus. As technological rivalry with the United States intensifies, the Chinese government is prioritizing the retention of advanced capabilities, particularly in areas such as deep learning and foundation models. The exodus of companies like MiroMind, and the punitive measures taken against others, signal that the era of fluid, borderless AI development for Chinese-origin firms is effectively over. Founders must now navigate a landscape where their technological ambitions are inextricably linked to national security imperatives.