A former senior White House artificial intelligence adviser on Monday defended a controversial chip export policy that seeks to maintain the US lead in AI by limiting the ability of some countries to buy powerful semiconductors.
"If computing power is so fundamental to AI, and the US and our allies are at such an extraordinary advantage in the design, production and use of that computing power, then we should be careful where we send this," Ben Buchanan, who served in former president Joe Biden's administration, said during Johns Hopkins University’s 2025 Emerging Technologies symposium.
Those policies, known as the AI diffusion rule, placed countries into tiers in terms of who would be able to obtain highly sought-after CPUs and GPUs integral to AI infrastructure.
That policy was announced during the final days of the Biden administration and mostly aimed at keeping US AI technology out of the hands of adversarial countries like China and Russia.
Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan and the UK are the countries exempt from AI diffusion restrictions, falling into the first tier of AI diffusion countries.
The third tier of countries – China, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria and Venezuela – will have the most difficulty obtaining GPUs and CPUs under the new rules.
In the second tier, however, are countries such as Switzerland, Poland, Greece, Singapore, India, Indonesia, Israel, the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
US technology and AI heavyweights such as Microsoft and Nvidia have come out strongly against the rule.
“Left unchanged, the Biden rule will give China a strategic advantage in spreading over time its own AI technology, echoing its rapid ascent in 5G telecoms a decade ago,” Microsoft's president and vice chairman Brad Smith wrote on the company's AI blog in February.
Ned Finkle, vice president of government affairs at Nvidia, a maker of many of the chips affected by the AI diffusion policy, said the Biden administration sought to "undermine America’s leadership with a 200-plus-page regulatory morass, drafted in secret and without proper legislative review".
Both Nvidia and Microsoft have said that the policy could have unintended consequences by pushing countries to buy from China instead of the US.
Ultimately, the decision to change or withdraw the AI diffusion role rests with the US Department of Commerce.
In February, Mr Trump’s Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick was present during meetings between Nvidia’s chief executive Jensen Huang and the US President. And in March, the chip export policy was also the topic of various conversations with the Trump White House during a visit by UAE officials.
So far, however, no changes in AI diffusion rule have come to fruition. The National contacted the US Commerce Department for comment, but has not heard back.
The UAE has made significant investments in recent years in AI as it seeks to diversify its economy away from oil. A source at Nvidia previously told The National the chip export rules will make it harder for countries including the UAE to build capacity for non-frontier AI use cases.
Frontier AI is a term used to describe highly capable AI models and technology that could pose risks to public safety.
At the Emerging Technologies symposium, however, Mr Buchanan, who is now an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies, denied that US technology companies like Nvidia were adversely affected by the chip export policies.
"The argument was that we were limiting who these US companies can sell these chips to and therefore limiting the revenue of these companies," he said.
"Nvidia's stock, prior to the tariffs at least, did very well and they've done just fine, because there's extraordinary demand for AI chips."
Mr Buchanan said worries about declining chip sales did not pan out.
Mr Buchanan said worries about declining chip sales did not eventuate. He said the Chinese semiconductor sector has not caught up with the US in terms of quality and processing power.
During a separate panel discussion at the emerging technology symposium, Eric Breckenfeld, Nvidia's director of technology policy, said the company made the most of a comment period announced by the Trump administration which is seeking to formulate an AI action plan for the country.
During that comment period, the White House urged citizens to “share their policy ideas” for AI.
The deadline for comments expired on March 15.
Meanwhile, much of the technology world is in wait and see mode to see if export policies get reversed.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
SHAITTAN
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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How to vote
Canadians living in the UAE can register to vote online and be added to the International Register of Electors.
They'll then be sent a special ballot voting kit by mail either to their address, the Consulate General of Canada to the UAE in Dubai or The Embassy of Canada in Abu Dhabi
Registered voters mark the ballot with their choice and must send it back by 6pm Eastern time on October 21 (2am next Friday)
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