Artificial intelligence, export controls, and great power competition

Abstract

Abstract The 2020s have witnessed rapid progress in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). Prompted by a desire for dominance in this emerging field, the United States of America and the People’s Republic of China (and to a far lesser extent, European countries) have been engaged in an increasingly acrimonious battle for AI supremacy, which has involved the extensive use of export controls designed to curb the other side’s AI development efforts. Both sides view the struggle as part of the broader great power competition between the two blocs, in which AI dominance is emerging as a key area of contention. This article will review briefly three key areas of this competition with geopolitical implications: (1) American (and allied) export controls on AI technology, largely targeted towards China but increasingly expanding to third countries as well; (2) Chinese export controls in the area of rare earth minerals, which are indispensable for the manufacture of advanced semiconductors; and (3) efforts to onshore AI-related manufacturing by the United States.

Authors 1

1. Yuan Zhu corresponding Aachen

   Leiden University

   Affiliation as printed

   Leiden University , Leiden and The Hague,