China Goes on the Offensive in the Chip War
Foreign AffairsOct 11, 2023
According to a Reuters report published Thursday, the US is considering including foreign subsidiaries of Chinese chip manufacturers on its Artificial Intelligence sanctions list after the US' previous round of curbs left a loophole that gave non-China-based subsidiaries access to advanced US chips.
This follows the Commerce Department's decision last week to block China's access to advanced AI computing and semiconductor technology that it claims Beijing could use to model nuclear blasts, guide hypersonic weapons, establish networks for surveilling dissidents and minorities, and more.
The US' current system of blockades and sanctions has been quite successful, but Washington must push harder to exclude the most advanced chip technology from falling into Beijing's hands. As China inevitably grows its own chip manufacturing capabilities, the US should allow its Asian counterpart to produce older generations of chips while also working with the rest of the world to block it from accessing the components necessary for advanced chips. The US can't stop China, but it can remain one step ahead.
As it works to wipe China off the tech economy map and monopolize the chip industry, the US is actually predicted to reduce its own companies' revenue and global market share by 37% and 18%, respectively. This, coupled with the loss of tens of thousands of American jobs, is what Washington is willing to induce as it plays tough-guy games with Beijing. If the US actually wanted to normalize relations, as it has said over and over again, it would stop treating China as an enemy.