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US lawmakers urge Commerce Department to investigate national security threat posed by China’s development of silicon photonics technology
US President Joe Biden’s administration announced on Monday that it is finalizing rules to limit US investment in Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) and other technology sectors that could threaten US national security. .
The rule was proposed by the U.S. Treasury Department in June and followed by an executive order signed by Biden last August that targets three key areas: semiconductors and microelectronics, quantum information technology, and certain AI systems. It was instructed to do so.
The rules are scheduled to take effect on January 2 next year and will be overseen by the Treasury Department’s new International Trade Bureau.
Photo: Reuters
“This suite of technologies will be at the core of the next generation of military, cybersecurity, surveillance, and intelligence applications,” the Treasury Department said.
Paul Rosen, assistant secretary of the Treasury for investment security, said the rule covers technologies such as “advanced code-breaking computer systems and next-generation fighter jets.”
He added: “U.S. investments, including the intangible benefits such as management support and access to investment and talent networks that often accompany these capital flows, help countries of concern develop military, intelligence, and cyber capabilities. “It must not be used for any purpose,” he added.
The move is part of a broader effort to prevent U.S. know-how from helping China develop advanced technology and dominate global markets.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said earlier this year that the rule was critical to preventing China from developing military-related technology.
The new rules include a carve-out that would allow U.S. investment in publicly traded securities, but officials said the U.S. was already prohibited from buying or selling securities of certain designated Chinese companies under a previous executive order. It is said that he has the authority to do so.
The U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the U.S. and the Communist Party of China has found that major U.S. index providers have diverted billions of dollars from U.S. investors to China, which believes the U.S. is promoting China’s military development. He criticized that the funds were being allocated to corporate stocks.
The select committee also asked the U.S. Department of Commerce to investigate the national security threat posed by China’s development of silicon photonics technology, a rapidly developing field that will lead to faster AI.
At its core, silicon photonics relies on light rather than electrical signals to move information within computer systems, and is used in AI systems where tens of thousands of computer chips are connected.
“The dual-use nature of photonics technology makes it particularly susceptible to military repurposing by problematic actors,” U.S. representatives John Moolenaar and Raja Krishnamoorthi said in a letter Monday.
A Department of Commerce spokesperson said, “We have received the letter and will respond through the appropriate channels.”
China is actively pursuing the technology, with Guangdong province participating in a series of funding programs aimed at manufacturing photonics chips in China in recent weeks, state media reported.
“China was probably the first state actor to mobilize resources and encourage local governments to work on photonics,” said Sunny Chan, an associate fellow in China studies at the Jamestown Foundation who has studied China’s efforts. (Zhang Kunyang) says. field.
