{"id":3037,"date":"2025-05-18T10:01:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-18T08:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kraftscharling.dk\/?p=3037"},"modified":"2025-05-16T12:32:43","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T10:32:43","slug":"ai-chips-limitations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kraftscharling.dk\/en\/ai-chips-begraensninger\/","title":{"rendered":"The US Lifts AI Chip Restrictions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Less than five months after imposing restrictions on the sale of AI chips, the US has now lifted them again. This is mainly due to the fact that the previous rules proved impossible to enforce. At the same time, a new picture may be emerging of which countries the US considers allies.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chip restrictions were introduced at the beginning of the year to secure the US\u2019s global AI leadership\u2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In its penultimate week, the Biden administration decided on the \u201cFramework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion\u201d<\/a> (FAID). The plan imposed limits on how many advanced chips various countries could purchase. These limits depended on how close an ally a country was considered to be, as well as<\/a> whether it would support US chip restrictions against third countries. The plan was created at the request of Big Tech and in consultation with the incoming Trump administration. It was regarded as one of the US\u2019s most important geopolitical tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But on May 7, the Trump administration announced that it was repealing FAID. This came after a three-hour Senate hearing with Sam Altman (OpenAI), Lisa Su (AMD), and Brad Smith (Microsoft). The AI industry had previously urged lawmakers to establish guidelines for AI development so that safety would not become a concern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

... but was repealed again in May because it is impossible to enforce in practice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

However, the industry has now completely changed course. This shift happened especially after JD Vance warned Europeans at the AI Action Summit in Paris in February that \u201cthe AI race is not going to be won by hand wringing about safety\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The repeal is not only due to concerns about hindering AI development. The measures also proved unenforceable in practice. China in particular circumvented the sanctions either by purchasing AI chips through intermediaries or by leasing access to offshore data centers using such chips. This made it possible, among other things, for China to develop DeepSeek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n