The European Union will raise concerns with the US over a decision to restrict the export of artificial intelligence (AI) chips from the likes of Nvidia Corp to some of its member states, according to people familiar with the matter.
In one of its last moves in office, former US president Joe Biden’s administration introduced a three-tier system to curb sales of AI chips used in data centers. The US placed Poland and a number of its allies in the EU’s east in the second-tier category of countries that face limits to the amount of computing power they can purchase.
The goal of the measures, which companies such as Nvidia and Oracle Corp have warned could be catastrophic for the US tech industry, is to ensure that the global development of AI aligns with American standards and relies on US technology.
Photo: Ronald Wittek, EPA-EFE
The rules split the globe into a group of close US allies including western European nations as well as Canada, Japan and the UK, which won’t face serious restrictions. The second category that will involve caps on AI chip imports covers most of the world, while the third group involves adversaries such as China and Russia, which are effectively barred from buying the powerful semiconductors.
The move goes against the EU’s single market by treating member states differently, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private discussions. It would also hinder innovation in the bloc’s east and unfairly favor western European companies, one of the people said.
Polish Minister of Digital Affairs Krzysztof Gawkowski said the White House’s decision was “incomprehensible and is not based on any substantive reasons.” Foreign ministers from Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania said in a joint statement that it undermines “the development of our national AI eco-systems.”
Although US President Donald Trump made little specific mention of Europe in his inaugural address, he has repeatedly threatened tariffs and the bloc is bracing for the worst.
If attempts to engage with the new US administration on alternatives such as a common approach to China fail, the EU has already prepared lists of goods to target if Trump moves forward with tariffs.
Three experts in the high technology industry have said that US President Donald Trump’s pledge to impose higher tariffs on Taiwanese semiconductors is part of an effort to force Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to the negotiating table. In a speech to Republicans on Jan. 27, Trump said he intends to impose tariffs on Taiwan to bring chip production to the US. “The incentive is going to be they’re not going to want to pay a 25, 50 or even a 100 percent tax,” he said. Darson Chiu (邱達生), an economics professor at Taichung-based Tunghai University and director-general of
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) is reportedly making another pass at Nissan Motor Co, as the Japanese automaker's tie-up with Honda Motor Co falls apart. Nissan shares rose as much as 6 percent after Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported that Hon Hai chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) instructed former Nissan executive Jun Seki to connect with French carmaker Renault SA, which holds about 36 percent of Nissan’s stock. Hon Hai, the Taiwanese iPhone-maker also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), was exploring an investment or buyout of Nissan last year, but backed off in December after the Japanese carmaker penned a deal
WASHINGTON POLICY: Tariffs of 10 percent or more and other new costs are tipped to hit shipments of small parcels, cutting export growth by 1.3 percentage points The decision by US President Donald Trump to ban Chinese companies from using a US tariff loophole would hit tens of billions of dollars of trade and reduce China’s economic growth this year, according to new estimates by economists at Nomura Holdings Inc. According to Nomura’s estimates, last year companies such as Shein (希音) and PDD Holdings Inc’s (拼多多控股) Temu shipped US$46 billion of small parcels to the US to take advantage of the rule that allows items with a declared value under US$800 to enter the US tariff-free. Tariffs of 10 percent or more and other new costs would slash such
SENSOR BUSINESS: The Taiwanese company said that a public tender offer would begin on May 7 through its wholly owned subsidiary Yageo Electronics Japan Yageo Corp (國巨), one of the world’s top three suppliers of passive components, yesterday said it is to launch a tender offer to fully acquire Japan’s Shibaura Electronics Co for up to ¥65.57 billion (US$429.37 million), with an aim to expand its sensor business. The tender offer would be a crucial step for the company to expand its sensor business, Yageo said. Shibaura Electronics is the world’s largest supplier of thermistors, with a market share of 13 percent, research conducted in 2022 by the Japanese firm showed. If a deal goes ahead, it would be the second acquisition of a sensor business since