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The US is imposing extensive export controls on artificial intelligence chips to make it harder for China and other adversaries to access advanced technology for military applications.
The Biden administration on Monday unveiled an export control regime that may give 20 close allies and partners full access to AI-related chips while imposing licensing requirements on most other countries. The move was met with immediate opposition from the U.S. semiconductor industry.
The policy goals to make it harder for China to make use of other countries to bypass existing U.S. restrictions and acquire technology that will be used for every thing from modeling nuclear weapons to hypersonic missiles.
“The rule provides each greater clarity for our international partners and industry and addresses the intense evasion and associated national security risks posed by countries of concern and malicious actors who may seek to make use of America's advanced technologies against us “said US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
The regime creates a three-tier licensing system for chips used to power data centers that process AI calculations. There aren’t any restrictions for the highest level, which incorporates countries similar to Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands and Ireland in addition to G7 members.
The third tier includes countries similar to China, Iran, Russia and North Korea, to which US firms are effectively not allowed to export. For the center class of greater than 100 countries, caps and licenses will apply to export quantities that exceed these limits.
An individual aware of the plans said sales of Nvidia's H20 chip series for China – a lower-power version of the corporate's most advanced chips adapted to U.S. export controls for Chinese customers – wouldn’t be affected by the brand new controls.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the policy ensures the brand new controls “don’t stifle U.S. innovation or technology leadership.” But it has sparked a furious backlash from the U.S. semiconductor industry.
The Semiconductor Industry Association and the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation issued forceful statements last week saying the policy would only give foreign competitors a bonus over U.S. firms.
Industry sources who spoke on condition of anonymity criticized the move, calling it an unprecedented move that shows Washington is attempting to micromanage the worldwide chip supply chain to the detriment of its allies and its own firms similar to Nvidia, AMD, Dell and Supermicro to administer.
“Although these rules are disguised under the guise of an 'anti-China' measure, they’d do nothing to enhance U.S. security. The recent rules would control technology worldwide, including technology already widely utilized in mainstream gaming PCs and consumer hardware,” Nvidia said in a blog post.
“The recent Biden rules would only weaken America’s global competitiveness and undermine the innovation that has kept the U.S. on the forefront.”
But Jimmy Goodrich, a senior adviser at Rand Corporation, said the foundations were an “essential framework” that strengthened national security and didn’t give Chinese AI firms a competitive advantage over U.S. corporations.
“The uncontrolled outsourcing of massive AI data centers to countries with questionable ties to foreign adversaries poses clear national and economic security risks,” Goodrich said. “The framework still allows thousands and thousands of chips to flow into globally, and concerns about Chinese competition in AI chips are currently overstated.”
Industry representatives questioned whether the U.S. would give you the chance to oversee such a comprehensive company-specific regime and expressed hope that the Trump administration would roll back controls. A U.S. official declined to comment on what the Trump administration might do but stressed that “time is really of the essence.”
“We are currently in a critical phase, particularly with regard to China. When you consider where our models are today in comparison with the People's Republic of China models, the estimates are currently anywhere from six to 18 months ahead, and so every minute counts,” the official said.
One person aware of the brand new regime said it was “nothing if not America First,” referring to the mantra often utilized by Donald Trump. “The query is whether or not the brand new government can keep on with it or fall victim to a policy of petro-autocracies.”
Ted Cruz, the Texas Republican and incoming chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, said last week that the foundations would “destroy America's semiconductor leadership.” He said he was prepared to trigger the Congressional Review Act, which could overturn actions by federal agencies.
Cruz said they were “drafted in secret without the involvement of Congress or American firms.” But Raimondo said the administration “made an effort and consulted with industry, civil society and experts on Capitol Hill.”
