Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The United States (US) authorities are taking broader and stricter steps to block technology from China. That way, US chip manufacturers can no longer sell semiconductors to the Bamboo Curtain country.
This tightening follows allegations that Chinese companies are secretly violating trade sanctions and still ‘smuggling’ US technology using various methods.
This new rule was first reported by Reuters. An official said the Joe Biden administration was drawing up further restrictive measures from the rules launched in October 2022.
In essence, shipments of sophisticated chips and chip manufacturing equipment from the US can no longer penetrate to China from various sources.
The update is expected to occur this week, although the schedule cannot be confirmed and could be higher than expected.
The new rules will block some AI chips that fall below current technical parameters and require companies to report shipments of other chips.
A spokesman for the US Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, declined to comment.
The latest crackdown on technology exports to China coincides with US efforts to thaw sour relations between the world’s two largest economies.
Several senior members of the Biden administration have met with their Chinese counterparts in recent months, and the latest regulations risk complicating diplomatic efforts.
The Biden administration says it designed the export restrictions to prevent US chips and equipment from strengthening China’s military.
Beijing accuses the United States of abusing export controls to suppress Chinese companies. These restrictions mark a historic shift in US-China technology policy.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Last year, restrictions imposed by the US government meant that Nvidia, the world’s most valuable chipmaker, could not ship two of its most advanced AI chips to Chinese customers, chips that have become the industry standard for developing chatbots and other AI systems.
However, Nvidia soon released a new variant on the Chinese market that was made less sophisticated and managed to pass US export controls.
One of them, called the H800, has as much computing power at some settings used in AI work as the company’s more powerful but blocked H100 chip. However, some key performance aspects are still limited, according to a spec sheet seen by Reuters.
The US is now planning to introduce new AI chip guidelines that will restrict certain advanced data center AI chips that are not currently in use.
Although the official declined to identify which additional chips would be effectively banned, Nvidia’s H800 is a semiconductor that sources suggest the government wants to block.
Santa Clara, California-based Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
[Gambas:Video CNBC]
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