The US blocking China’s access to semiconductor technologies

The Biden Administration’s announcement on new export controls restricting access to semiconductor technologies and personnel represents a watershed moment in US-China trade. The Biden Administration is clamping down on China’s access to semiconductors, reports the New York Times, and in doing so, may be choking off China’s abilities to shape artificial intelligence, according to an in depth analysis from Gregory C. Allen of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The US is dramatically expanding the scope of its export controls, per Edward Alden in Foreign Policy.

American firms could lose out while Chinese companies elude some bans, reports Scott Foster in Asia Times, though, the new rules could be very bad for both American and Chinese firms, according to Paul Triolo and Kendra Schaefer, writing for the China Project. The new rules bar American citizens from aiding Chinese semiconductor development, stranding some tech executives, reports Nikkei Asia.

The new rules are just the latest in a series of actions taken by the Biden Administration to restrict Chinese access to cutting-edge technologies, says Reva Goujon of the Rhodium Group. The Wire China has a useful summary of the complexities of the semiconductor supply chain.

Mentioned publications

Biden Administration Clamps Down on China’s Access to Chip Technology – Ana Swanson, The New York Times, 7 October 2022.
The US takes a more aggressive approach to hinder China’s development of critical technologies.
Choking Off China’s Access to the Future of AI – Gregory C. Allen, Center for Strategic and International Studies, 11 October 2022
The impact of and motivations for the Biden Administration’s aggressive moves on tech exports to China.
Washington Raises Stakes in War on Chinese Technology – Edward Alden, Foreign Policy, 11 October 2022.
The US builds on its Cold War playbook when it comes to Chinese technological development.
China on course to elude US chip-making equipment bans – Scott Foster, Asia Times, 3 October 2022.
Will US efforts to cut China off from critical technologies drive Chinese development while barring US sales to a key market?
New U.S chip rules could be very bad, for American and Chinese firms – Paul Triolo and Kendra Schaefer, The China Project, 5 October 2022
Restrictions on US semiconductor sales could reshape trade and development of advanced technologies.
China's 'sea turtle' tech executives stranded by U.S. crackdown – Cheng Ting-fang, Nikkei Asia, 11 October 2022
How will new US export control rules affect the operations of Chinese semiconductor firms managed by US citizens?
Running Target: Next-Level US Tech Controls on China – Reva Goujon, Rhodium Group, 28 September 2022
Rhodium Group provides a useful summary of the drumbeat of actions the US Government has taken.
Semiconductor Shakeup – Eliot Chen, The Wire China, 11 September 2022
A quick explainer of the key parts of the global semiconductor supply chain and the way forward.