WASHINGTON: The United States has moved to tighten export controls on advanced artificial intelligence chips by closing a loophole that may have allowed Chinese companies operating outside China to obtain some of the world’s most sophisticated semiconductors.
The US Department of Commerce issued new guidance clarifying that export licence requirements for advanced AI chips also apply to Chinese-headquartered companies and subsidiaries located overseas.
The move is aimed at preventing Chinese firms from accessing high-end processors, including Nvidia’s advanced Blackwell AI chips, through operations based in countries outside mainland China.
According to industry sources cited by Reuters, hundreds of thousands of advanced chips may have reached overseas subsidiaries of Chinese companies over the past year.
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), which oversees US export controls, said the guidance reinforces restrictions that have been in place since 2023.
“BIS issued guidance clarifying export licence requirements that have been in place since 2023,” a bureau spokesperson said, adding that the agency would continue to enforce controls to safeguard critical American technology.
The guidance follows concerns raised in Washington that existing rules contained a gap allowing Chinese firms operating abroad to purchase advanced AI chips without a licence.
Technology and national security experts have argued that access to such chips could help accelerate China’s artificial intelligence capabilities.
While the new measures tighten restrictions on future exports, the guidance does not require data centres already using the chips to stop operations or discontinue support services.
The development marks the latest step in the ongoing US effort to limit China’s access to advanced technologies considered critical to national security and AI development.
