Open Model Roundup: Kimi K3, Qwen 3.8, the Distillation Controversy, and the Open-Closed Gap
The Interconnects podcast uses last week's release of Kimi K3 as the starting point for a quarterly roundup of open models, discussing its gap to the closed-source frontier, the continuing role of GLM 5.2, and progress from Chinese vendors such as Qwen, DeepSeek, and MiniMax. The episode also covers the distillation controversy, the U.S. open-model ecosystem, the distinction between frontier and near-frontier models, and cybersecurity arguments against bans.
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