The Biden administration today announced a controversial new export control plan, designed to prevent advanced chips and artificial intelligence models themselves from ending up in the hands of adversaries like China.
Dividing the world
The new “AI diffusion rule” divides the world into nations that can have unrestricted access to the United States’ most advanced silicon and AI algorithms, and others that will need special licenses to access the technology. The rule, which will be enforced by the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security, also seeks to restrict the movement of the most powerful AI models for the first time.
“The US is now a world leader in AI, both in AI development and AI chip design, and it is critical that we continue to be that way,” said US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo ahead of today’s announcement.
The list of trusted countries includes United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Japan, France, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Sweden and Taiwan.
Companies in other nations not subject to arms controls will be able to obtain up to 1,700 of the latest AI chips without needing special permission, according to the rule. They will be able to apply for a special license to acquire more chips, build very large-scale data centers with American technology, or access the most powerful closed-model “weights” manufactured by American companies. Businesses will be required to have adequate physical and cyber security to obtain a license.
Supply chain activities, including chip design, manufacturing and warehousing, will be exempt from the rule. According to the administration, the rule will also not restrict open source AI models, such as Llama de Meta.
Countries with the ban
Countries under arms embargo, such as China, Iran and North Korea, are already prohibited from obtaining advanced chips. The new rule will restrict your access to advanced models for the first time.
“The semiconductors that power [la IA] and weight models are, as we all know, a dual-use technology,” Raimondo added before the announcement. “They are used in many commercial applications, but they can also be used by our adversaries to perform nuclear simulations, develop biological weapons and make advance their armies.”
However, the rule will surely fuel controversy, because it could strangle international sales of AI at a critical time for the industry. It comes just a week before Trump’s inauguration. The ruling establishes a 120-day consultation period, meaning Donald Trump’s administration is expected to listen to input, perhaps modify the rule, and then apply it.
Nvidia, the world’s leading maker of artificial intelligence chips, called the rule “unprecedented and wrong” in a blog. Although they are disguised as an “anti-China” measure, these regulations will do nothing to improve the security of the United States. “Rather than mitigating any threats, Biden’s new rules would only weaken America’s global competitiveness, undermining the innovation that has kept America ahead.”
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