Nvidia flatters Trump with scathing response to Biden’s up-to-date AI chip restrictions

Nvidia is coming to terms with the incoming Trump administration after criticizing the up-to-date AI framework just announced by the Biden administration. The regulations are intended to keep advanced chips and artificial intelligence models under the control of the United States and its allies, but the president-elect will have the final decision on enforcement.

If implemented, the “Interim Final Rules on the Diffusion of Artificial Intelligence” announced today would place up-to-date limits on the number of artificial intelligence chips that companies can ship to different countries without striking special agreements with the U.S. government. Based on estimates, this will have the biggest impact on Nvidia 90 percent share AI chips.

The up-to-date rules aim to close loopholes that would allow countries like China and Russia – which they already fall under existing restrictions on trade in semiconductors — to obtain or develop its own artificial intelligence technology. The Biden administration wants to keep the transformative development of artificial intelligence under the control of the United States and its 18 allies, which include Britain, Canada, Germany, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea. All other countries will be subject to quotas restricting the import of AI chips.

“In the wrong hands, powerful artificial intelligence systems can increase significant national security threats, including enabling the development of weapons of mass destruction, supporting massive offensive cyber operations, and aiding human rights abuses such as mass surveillance,” the White House said in a statement. “Currently, countries of concern are actively using AI – including US AI – in this way and seeking to undermine US leadership in AI.”

Nvidia claims that up-to-date restrictions on the “diffusion of artificial intelligence” threaten to derail global “innovation and economic growth” and undermine the previous Trump administration’s efforts to create a successful environment for the development of artificial intelligence.

“In its final days in office, the Biden administration seeks to undermine America’s leadership with a more than 200-page regulatory morass written in secrecy and without adequate legislative oversight.” – Nvidia said in a statement. “This radical expansion would impose bureaucratic control over how America’s leading semiconductors, computers, systems and even software are designed and sold globally.”

“The first Trump administration laid the foundation for America’s current strength and success in artificial intelligence by creating an environment in which American industry could compete and win on merit, without compromising national security,” Nvidia said in a statement. “Rather than mitigating any threat, Biden’s new rules will only weaken America’s global competitiveness by undermining the innovations that have given the U.S. an edge.”

“We look forward to returning to a policy that strengthens American leadership, strengthens our economy, and preserves our competitive advantage in artificial intelligence and beyond,” Nvidia states in its MAGA summary.

Notably, Nvidia is not on the list of tech companies that have donated to Trump’s inaugural fund, and CEO Jensen Huang was not invited to Mar-a-Lago. Perhaps that will change now that Nvidia has reasons to seek favor.

In addition to restricting the export of AI chips, the regulations also establish security standards to control AI model “weights” – unique parameters that determine how each AI model makes its predictions. Companies like Microsoft and Google that operate data centers can also apply for special government accreditations that allow them to trade AI chips with fewer restrictions in exchange for adhering to security standards set by the Biden administration.

The up-to-date data center rules aim to keep the development of the most advanced artificial intelligence models within the borders of the United States and its partners. According to Recent York Times, Microsoft says it could “fully meet the high security standards of this policy and meet the technology needs of the countries and customers around the world that rely on us,” in a statement attributed to Microsoft CEO Brad Smith.