WASHINGTON: Biden administration officials have discussed capping sales of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips from Nvidia Corp and other American companies on a country-specific basis, people familiar with the matter say.
The new approach would set a ceiling on export licences for certain countries in the interest of national security, according to the people, who spoke about the private discussions on condition of anonymity.
Officials are focused on Persian Gulf countries that have a growing appetite for AI data centres and the deep pockets to fund them, the people said.
Deliberations are in the early stages and remain fluid, the people said, noting that the idea has gained traction in recent weeks.
The policy would build on a new framework to ease the licensing process for AI chip shipments to data centres in places like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia.
US Commerce Department officials unveiled those regulations last month and said there are more rules coming.
The agency’s Bureau of Industry and Security, which oversees export controls, declined to comment. Nvidia, the market leader for AI chips, also declined to comment, as did Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
A representative for Intel Corp, which also makes such processors, didn’t respond to a request for comment.
A spokesperson for the White House National Security Council declined to comment but pointed to a joint statement by the United States and the UAE on AI.
In it, the two countries acknowledged the “tremendous potential of AI for good,” as well as the “challenges and risks of this emerging technology and the vital importance of safeguards”.
Setting country-based caps would tighten restrictions that originally targeted China’s ambitions in AI, as Washington considers the security risks of AI development around the world.
Already, the Biden administration has restricted AI chip shipments by companies like Nvidia and AMD to more than 40 countries across the Middle East, Africa and Asia over fears their products could be diverted to China.
At the same time, some US officials have come to view semiconductor export licences, particularly for Nvidia chips, as a point of leverage to achieve broader diplomatic goals. — Bloomberg
