Microsoft is reportedly preparing to lobby the Trump administration to relax restrictions on the export of advanced AI chips. The move aims to prevent U.S. allies from turning to China for their AI infrastructure needs, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
The current U.S. restrictions, primarily targeting exports to Beijing, have inadvertently hampered American chipmakers and tech giants in serving a major semiconductor market. This has accelerated the global competition for dominance in AI infrastructure.
Microsoft’s proposal, which is expected to be detailed in a blog post, advocates for loosening the export limits for a group of U.S. allies, including Switzerland, India, and Israel. The company argues that these allies, faced with limited access to U.S. chips, may increase their reliance on Chinese alternatives. “The unintended consequence of expanded export restrictions would be that allies facing limited U.S. chip supply would turn to China,” the WSJ quoted Microsoft President Brad Smith as saying.
While Chinese companies such as Huawei have struggled to compete with top-tier products from Nvidia, analysts suggest that the emergence of cost-effective models from Chinese startups represents a potential challenge to U.S. market leadership. China is actively using the U.S. export restrictions to promote itself as a more reliable long-term partner to other countries for AI infrastructure development.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
The company’s move reflects concerns about the long-term implications of these restrictions and China’s increasing push into AI infrastructure. The outcome will have substantial impacts on the balance of power in the rapidly evolving global AI landscape. The situation is particularly sensitive given that artificial intelligence development is essential to economic advancement.
