Useless Export Controls Fail to Stop China from Acquiring Sensitive Emerging Technologies

By Steve Coonen “If you want it, here it is, come and get it,” sang the British band Badfinger in their 1969 song “Come and Get It.” That tune, written by Paul McCartney, might as well be the theme song for the U.S. Government’s inability to protect emerging or foundational technologies, including semiconductor technologies, from the Chinese military. Emerging and foundational technologies assist in providing the underlying knowledge and capabilities required for Chairman Xi and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to dominate and control key technological economic sectors and further modernize their military. Indeed, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute stated that China has a “stunning lead” in research into 37 out of 44 critical technologies, including those with clear military… Read More

As Nvidia Holds Its Annual Meeting, One Shareholder Raises the National Security Risk of Serving the PRC

By Steve Coonen California-based artificial intelligence chipmaker Nvidia had its annual shareholder meeting on June 22. Owners of the company’s stock should have plenty to be thankful for. The explosion of investor interest in AI technologies since ChatGPT’s emergence in November of last year has caused Nvidia’s share price to climb 200% in 2023, leading it to become one of only seven trillion-dollar companies by market capitalization. But there is a darker side to Nvidia’s growth that even the Biden Administration is now recognizing: its sales to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) which undermine American national security. On June 27 the Wall Street Journal reported that the Department of Commerce is considering new restrictions on exports of AI chips… Read More

CTT Conversations: The NVIDIA Hack and the National Security Catastrophe

The hack of NVIDIA has exposed the blueprints of a $580 billion semiconductor juggernaut, putting some of America’s most valuable chip designs at risk of appropriation by Chinese government entities and others. CTT sat down with Dylan Patel, a leading semiconductor industry analyst and Daniel Markus, lead China Task Force staffer to discuss mitigating the impact of this hack. Patel provided an overview of the Nvidia hack and the implications pertaining to Chinese semiconductor firms. Patel explained, “Nvidia’s software is best in class, and hackers have exposed Nvidia’s proprietary designs and put them in the public domain. Now Chinese AI firms and others can kick start their own R&D and catch up with ease… It’s virtually impossible to protect yourself… Read More