Microsoft Urges Trump to Ease AI Chip Restrictions on Israel and Allies
Tech Giant Warns Restrictions Could Push Key Partners Toward Chinese Alternatives
Omer Kabir and Reuters | 17:29, 27.02.25
Microsoft has urged President Donald Trump’s team to ease export restrictions on artificial intelligence chips, which were imposed in the final days of the Biden administration. The tech giant argues that these measures should not apply to certain U.S. allies, including Israel, India, and Switzerland, as they disadvantage these nations while also limiting U.S. tech companies’ ability to build and expand AI data centers in these countries.
Tighter U.S. restrictions on the export of advanced AI chips to Beijing have already begun to impact American chipmakers and Big Tech firms, preventing them from serving one of the largest semiconductor markets. This development accelerates the global race for AI infrastructure dominance. Nvidia, the market leader in AI chips, whose technology powers applications like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, is among the hardest hit. Following previous measures that restricted most of its graphics processor exports to Beijing, the final days of the Biden administration saw even stricter limitations on AI chip exports.
Microsoft warns that such restrictions might unintentionally benefit Beijing by pushing U.S. allies toward China’s AI technology. According to Microsoft, “If left unchanged, the Biden rule will give China a strategic advantage in spreading its own AI technology over time, echoing its rapid ascent in 5G telecommunications a decade ago.”
While Chinese firms like Huawei continue to struggle in developing high-end chips that can rival Nvidia’s, some analysts believe that startups like DeepSeek, which focus on inference-based, low-cost models, may gain a foothold in the market. Microsoft also cautioned that the sweeping restrictions introduced in January “will become a gift to China’s rapidly expanding AI sector.”
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The Wall Street Journal first reported on Microsoft’s concerns, revealing that Trump administration officials are considering ways to reinforce the restrictions while simplifying export-control rules. Microsoft, a leading player in generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) due to its partnership with OpenAI, operates major R&D centers worldwide, including in Israel. The company believes unrestricted access to AI computing power is crucial for global AI development and deployment.
Trump administration officials are currently reviewing the Biden-era regulations. According to Microsoft President Brad Smith, the company supports some aspects of the policy, such as the full export ban on tier-three countries and parts of the licensing system for tier-two nations.
Tags: Microsoft, Chips, Donald Trump