US officials are debating a new regulatory framework for exporting artificial intelligence (AI) chips and are considering requiring foreign nations to invest in US AI data centers or security guarantees as a condition for granting exports of 200,000 chips or more, according to a document seen by Reuters.
The rules are not yet final and could change. They would be the first attempt to regulate the flow of AI chips to US allies and partners since US President Donald Trump’s administration said it rescinded its predecessor’s so-called AI diffusion rules. Those rules sought to keep a significant amount of AI infrastructure buildout in the US and route most purchases through a handful of US cloud computing companies.
If adopted, the proposal would give the Trump administration ample leverage to negotiate investments in the US, one of Trump’s top priorities, as it decides how many AI chips to give to each country.
Photo: Bloomberg
The rules depart markedly from former US president Joe Biden’s approach, which was based on the premise that close US allies should be exempted from most restrictions on exports of the coveted chips.
The proposed rules would not affect blacklisted countries such as Russia, which cannot obtain US AI chips under rules set by the Biden administration. China, which was among those countries, got a greenlight in December to receive Nvidia’s second-most advanced AI chips. Those shipments have been held up by national security requirements that could convince China not to go through with the purchases.
According to a document seen by Reuters, even small chip installations of less than 1,000 chips could need a license.
To qualify for an exemption, the exporter of the chips, such as Nvidia or Advanced Micro Devices, would have to monitor them, and the recipient would have to agree to use software that would not allow the chips to be linked to other chips to form a “cluster,” it says.
Foreign firms that want up to 100,000 chips would need to provide government-to-government assurances, it says.
The Trump administration already required Saudi Arabia to provide such assurances in order to purchase advanced chips, it says.
Installations of up to 200,000 chips could also require visits from US export control officials, the document says.
“The rule could help the US government address chip diversion to China and ensure a more secure buildout of the most powerful AI supercomputers,” said Saif Khan, a former national security official in the Biden administration now at the Washington think tank Institute for Progress.
“But the license requirements are overly broad, applying globally, raising concerns that the administration intends to use the controls as negotiation leverage with allies rather than for security,” Khan said.
Ryanair, Transavia, Volotea and other low-cost airlines are feeling the financial pain from high jet fuel prices as a result of the Middle East war and are cutting flights. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has taken a huge chunk of oil supplies off the market, sending the price of jet fuel soaring and triggering fears of shortages that could force airlines to cancel flights. Airlines are not waiting for a lack of supplies to react. “Travel alert: Airlines are cutting thousands of flights right now,” Travel Therapy host Karen Schaler said in an Instagram reel this past weekend.
MANAGING RISKS: Taiwan has secured LNG sufficient to cover 95 percent of electricity demand for next month, UBS said, describing the government’s approach as proactive UBS Group AG has raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth this year to 8 percent, up from 6.9 percent previously, and said expansion could reach as high as 8.6 percent if external energy shocks are avoided. The upgrade reflects a stronger-than-expected first-quarter performance and sustained momentum in artificial intelligence (AI)-driven exports, which UBS said are providing a firm foundation for growth despite geopolitical and energy risks. Taiwan’s GDP expanded 13.69 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, the fastest growth since the second quarter of 1987, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) reported on Thursday. On a seasonally
The list of Asian stocks that benefit from business partnership with Nvidia Corp is getting longer, as the region further integrates into the artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant’s business ecosystem. Just in the past week, South Korea’s LG Electronics Inc, Taiwan’s Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技), as well as China’s Huizhou Desay SV Automotive Co (德賽西威) and Pateo Connect Technology Shanghai Corp (博泰車聯) have become the latest to rally on news of tie-ups, supply-chain participation or product collaboration with the US chip designer. Asian suppliers account for about 90 percent of Nvidia’s production costs, up from about 65 percent last year, data compiled
The Fair Trade Commission’s (FTC) ongoing review of Grab Holdings Ltd’s US$600 million acquisition of Foodpanda Taiwan’s operations, announced on March 23, has taken on fresh urgency as industry experts warn that the transaction could embed significant Chinese cybersecurity vulnerabilities into Taiwan’s digital infrastructure through Grab’s deep ties to autonomous-driving firm WeRide (文遠知行). Less than 16 months after the FTC blocked Uber Eats’ direct attempt to acquire Foodpanda Taiwan — citing potential combined market shares of 80 to 90 percent — the emergence of Grab as the buyer has prompted questions about whether the same competitive harm is simply being rerouted
RSS