The Biden administration on Monday will define how AI chips and models can be shared with foreign countries, aiming to establish a global framework that will guide how artificial intelligence will spread around the world in the coming years. announced comprehensive regulations.
As the power of AI rapidly increases, the Biden administration says rules are needed to keep the transformative technology under the control of the U.S. and its allies and keep it out of the hands of adversaries who can use it to augment their own militaries. . Threatening the United States, including cyberattacks.
Tech companies are protesting the new rules, saying they threaten their sales and the future of the U.S. tech industry.
The rules set various limits on the number of AI chips that companies can send to each country, effectively dividing the world into three categories: The United States and 18 of its closest partners (including the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan) are exempt from any restrictions and can freely purchase AI chips.
Countries already subject to U.S. arms embargoes, such as China and Russia, will continue to face existing bans on AI chip purchases.
All other countries, most of the world, will have a limit on the number of AI chips they can import, but countries and companies can increase that number by striking special agreements with the U.S. government. . This rule could irritate some foreign governments. Even close trading partners and military allies of the United States, such as Mexico, Switzerland, Poland, and Israel, will face restrictions on purchasing large quantities of American AI products.
The rules are aimed at preventing China from acquiring the technology needed to manufacture artificial intelligence from other countries, after the United States recently banned the sale of artificial intelligence to China.
But the regulation also includes broader goals. That means companies choosing allies to build the world’s largest data centers and keeping cutting-edge AI models within the borders of the United States and its partners.
Governments around the world, especially in the Middle East, are pouring money into attracting and building huge data centers to become the next AI development centers.
President Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Sunday that the rule would place infrastructure for training cutting-edge artificial intelligence within the United States or under the jurisdiction of close allies. “That ability will not be leaked overseas,” he said. We had to invest hundreds of billions of dollars to bring chip, battery, and other industries back on land. ”
Sullivan said the rule would counter national security threats from bad actors who could use “American technology against our country,” while also providing “more clarity for our international partners and industry.” He said it would happen.
It will be up to the Trump administration to decide whether and how to enforce the new rules. Biden administration officials said in a call with reporters Sunday that the rule has bipartisan support and that they are discussing the rule with the incoming administration.
Chinese companies have begun developing their own AI chips, but the global market for these chips is dominated by American companies, particularly Nvidia. This advantage has allowed the U.S. government to regulate the flow of AI technology around the world by restricting the exports of U.S. companies.
Companies have protested these restrictions, saying they prevent harmless or useful types of computing, anger U.S. allies, and ultimately discourage global buyers from purchasing non-U.S. products, including those made in China. It is argued that there is a possibility that it could be pursued.
Ned Finkle, Nvidia’s vice president of government affairs, said in a statement that the rule is “unprecedented and misguided” and “could stifle innovation and economic growth around the world.”
“Far from mitigating any threat, Biden’s new rules will only weaken America’s global competitiveness and undermine the innovation that has kept America ahead,” he said. Nvidia stock fell more than 2% on Monday morning.
Microsoft President Brad Smith said in a statement that he is confident the company can “fully comply with the rule’s high security standards and meet the technology needs of the countries and customers around the world who trust us.” said.
In a letter to Congressional leadership Sunday seen by The New York Times, Jason Oxman, president of the Information Technology Industry Council, a group representing high-tech companies, urged Congress to intervene and He asked them to use their authority to overturn the lawsuit. The Trump administration did not do that.
“A policy shift of this scale and impact is being rushed through just days before the presidential transition and without any meaningful input from the industry,” said Semiconductor Industry Association President John Neufer. I am extremely disappointed.”
“The stakes are high and the timing is difficult,” Neufer added.
The more than 200-page rule also creates a system for companies that operate data centers, such as Microsoft and Google, to apply for special government certification.
These companies will be able to trade their AI chips more freely around the world in exchange for following certain security standards. Both companies would have to agree to keep 75 percent of their total AI computing power in the United States or an allied nation, and no more than 7 percent of their computing power in one other country.
This rule also sets initial controls on the AI model’s weights. This is a parameter specific to each model that determines how artificial intelligence makes predictions. Companies that locate data centers overseas are required to adopt security standards to protect this intellectual property and prevent adversaries from accessing it.
Governments facing restrictions can increase the number of AI chips they can freely import by entering into agreements with the U.S. government that align with U.S. goals for protecting AI.
Under guidance from the U.S. government, Microsoft last year agreed to partner with Emirati company G42 in exchange for G42 taking steps such as removing Huawei equipment from its systems. did.
The Biden administration will issue further rules related to chips and AI in the coming days, including an executive order encouraging domestic energy generation for data centers and new rules aimed at keeping cutting-edge chips out of China. It is possible, sources said. The council stated:
The latter rule comes after U.S. authorities discovered that sanctioned Chinese telecommunications company Huawei had obtained components for its AI chips made by a major Taiwanese semiconductor company in violation of U.S. export controls. This law was enacted in response to last year’s incident.
The announcements are among new regulations the Biden administration is rushing to issue ahead of the presidential transition as it seeks to close loopholes and solidify its tradition of countering Chinese technological development. The administration has placed new limits on exports of chip-making equipment to China and other countries, proposed new restrictions on Chinese-made drones, added new Chinese companies to the military’s blacklist and imposed restrictions on U.S. chip manufacturing. A final decision on new subsidies is being made quickly.
But the AI regulation issued on Monday appears to be one of the most far-reaching and significant of these measures. Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing the way scientists conduct research, the way companies assign tasks to employees, and the way militaries operate. While AI has many useful uses, U.S. officials say it could upend the global balance of power, including enabling the development of new weapons and helping countries monitor dissidents. There are growing concerns about this.
Jimmy Goodrich, senior adviser for technology analysis at the RAND Corporation, said the rule creates a framework that allows companies to compete overseas while protecting U.S. national security interests. “They are also proactive and trying to preserve U.S. and allied-led supply chains before they are offshored to the highest subsidy bidder,” he said.
