AMAZON, Apple, Google, IBM and their peers could be subject to new restrictions on how they export the technology behind voice-activated smartphones, self-driving cars and speedy supercomputers to China under a proposal floated on Monday by the Trump administration.
For the US government, its pursuit of new regulations marks a heightened effort to ensure that emerging technologies – including artificial intelligence (AI) – do not fall into the hands of countries or actors that might pose a national security threat.
The official request for public comment, published in the Federal Register, asks whether a long list of AI tools should be subject to stricter export-control rules. The Trump administration’s potential targets include image recognition software, ultrafast quantum computers, advanced computer chips, self-driving cars and robots. Companies that make those products and services, for instance, might have to obtain licences before selling them to foreign governments or partnering with some researchers in certain countries.
The document itself is only an initial notice of rules to come, and the Commerce Department, which is leading the effort, is still deciding how to proceed. But its broad wording, along with the White House’s long-running, high-stakes trade rift with Beijing, left some tech experts fearful that it could result in greater market barriers for companies doing business in China. They also worry that any rule could adversely affect US investment and research in AI.
Source: businesstimes.com.sg
