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Nvidia showers Trump with praise as it bashes the Biden rule

Nvidia logo on headquarters

A few days ago, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources, that Biden was pushing for tighter restrictions on NVIDIA AI chip exports. The report suggested that he could introduce new regulations establishing three tiers of restrictions.

The final tier is reserved for countries like Russia and China, the usual suspects in these cases. Tier 1, the most permissive, is for nations friendly to the US.

According to Bloomberg, countries in this tier will get unrestricted access to American chips, including the US (naturally), Canada, Australia, French Guiana, Greenland, parts of Europe, and Japan. Tier 2, as shown on a map shared by Bloomberg, includes regions like South America, Kenya, India, and Nigeria, among others.

An image of the restricted areas
Image: Bloomberg

Today, the White House released the Interim Final Rule on Artificial Intelligence Diffusion claiming it would "streamline licensing hurdles for both large and small chip orders, bolster US AI leadership, and provide clarity to allied and partner nations about how they can benefit from AI." The White House outlined six "key mechanisms" in the rule. They are:

  • No restrictions for key allies: Chip sales to 18 major allies and partners are unrestricted, allowing countries with strong tech protection to easily make large-scale purchases.
  • No license needed for small orders: Orders up to the equivalent of 1,700 advanced GPUs don’t require a license and don’t count against chip caps. Most chip orders, especially from universities and research groups, fall into this category.
  • Universal Verified End User (UVEU) status: Trusted entities in close ally countries can get UVEU status, letting them place up to 7% of their global AI computational capacity around the world (hundreds of thousands of chips). This helps U.S. and allied global leadership while keeping frontier AI tech at home.
  • National Verified End User (NVEU) status: Trusted entities in non-concern countries can apply for NVEU status and purchase up to 320,000 GPUs over the next two years. This helps local governments and businesses access U.S. technology, with safeguards against misuse.
  • Large purchases still allowed for non-VEUs: Non-VEU entities outside close allies can still buy up to 50,000 advanced GPUs per country. This ensures U.S. tech is available for foreign governments, healthcare, and local businesses.
  • Government-to-government deals: Countries that sign agreements with the U.S. on AI, export controls, and tech security can double their chip cap to 100,000 GPUs. It helps create a global ecosystem with shared values on AI development and deployment.

The new rule tightens control over advanced AI tech while still encouraging U.S. tech spread. Here’s what it covers:

  • Advanced Semiconductors: The rule makes sure that advanced chips sold abroad aren't used by certain countries to train advanced AI systems, but it still allows these chips for regular tech like telecom and banking.
  • Model Weights: It restricts sharing the model weights of advanced closed-weight AI models with non-trusted actors. But don’t worry, it doesn’t stop the sharing of model weights for open-weight models.
  • Security Standards: The rule sets security standards for storing and using the weights of advanced closed-weight AI models, ensuring they’re protected from unauthorized access globally.

So, why is the US doing this? The main goal is to "protect U.S. national security" by regulating the sale of AI chips used in data centers, particularly in countries that don’t have a strong relationship with the US.

If the US moves forward with its plan, companies like NVIDIA, the world’s largest AI chip supplier, will need to comply. We've already seen what happens when companies fail to follow US export regulations.

NVIDIA isn’t happy about it. In a statement, the company's VP of government affairs, Ned Finkle, criticized the Biden administration, calling the rule "misguided" and accusing Biden of putting global AI progress in jeopardy and weakening America:

In its last days in office, the Biden Administration seeks to undermine America’s leadership with a 200+ page regulatory morass, drafted in secret and without proper legislative review. This sweeping overreach would impose bureaucratic control over how America’s leading semiconductors, computers, systems, and even software are designed and marketed globally.

And by attempting to rig market outcomes and stifle competition — the lifeblood of innovation — the Biden Administration’s new rule threatens to squander America’s hard-won technological advantage.

He also praised Donald Trump, saying that his administration provided an environment for the US AI industry to compete and "win on merit" without any compromises on national security. Finkle concluded the press release by claiming that NVIDIA was looking forward to the return of Trump, as his policies "strengthen American leadership, bolster our economy, and preserve our competitive edge in AI and beyond."

Image via Depositphotos.com

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