Nvidia blasts Biden admin for ‘misguided’ restrictions on AI chips, praises Trump

Nvidia blasted the Biden administration for implementing “misguided” rules limiting shipments of AI computer chips — and praised newly elected President Donald Trump — in a rare public broadcast Monday.

The chip giant – which has ridden the AI ​​wave to become the world’s most valuable company – challenged last-minute rules unveiled Monday that cap the number of advanced chips most countries can buy to American companies.

The new policy would also strengthen AI-related data export requirements for companies that create closed-source models, such as Google and OpenAI.

“In its final days in office, the Biden administration seeks to undermine American leadership with a regulatory quagmire of more than 200 pages, drafted in secret and without proper legislative review,” said Ned Finkle, vice president for corporate affairs. Nvidia’s external platforms.

“This overreach would impose bureaucratic control over how major U.S. semiconductors, computers, systems and even software are designed and marketed globally,” Finkle added.

Nvidia shares plunged more than 3% after the Biden administration’s announcement. The company is the largest provider of advanced graphics processing units, or GPUs, that power data centers linked to AI models.

Finkle said Trump “laid the foundation for America’s current strength and success in AI” during his first term and that the Biden administration’s rules could erode that advantage.

“As the first Trump administration demonstrated, America wins through innovation, competition and sharing its technologies with the world – not by hiding behind a wall of government overreach,” Finkle said .

“We look forward to a return to policies that strengthen American leadership, support our economy, and preserve our competitive advantage in AI and beyond.” »

Representatives for Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The rules are expected to take effect after a 120-day comment period. That means the Trump administration should have wide discretion over how measures are implemented and whether changes are necessary.

Officials said the rules were necessary to protect U.S. national security and prevent adversaries like China and North Korea from accessing cutting-edge technologies. But critics, including Nvidia, say they are too restrictive and could harm innovation.

Foreign adversaries like China, Russia, North Korea and Iran have already faced export bans on advanced AI chips. Under the new rule, more than 120 countries – including Israel, Switzerland and Mexico – could also face new limits on access to chips.

A group of 18 close U.S. allies, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Taiwan, will face no new restrictions, according to the White House.

Additionally, relatively small orders of 1,700 advanced chips or fewer – described as the “vast majority” of orders – will not require a license and will not be counted in the national chip count.

Companies that offer cloud computing services internationally, such as Microsoft, Amazon and Google, can apply for exemptions provided they meet certain security requirements.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, who led the administration’s effort to impose export controls, argued that the restrictions would maintain U.S. leadership in artificial intelligence while protecting national security .

“As AI becomes more powerful, the risks to our national security become even more intense,” Raimondo said on a call with reporters.

Nvidia is the latest in a string of U.S.-based technology companies that have sought closer ties with Trump since his election victory.

Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos have each met with Trump in recent weeks, while X owner Elon Musk is a key adviser to the president-elect.

Trump pledged to support American technological innovation and named former PayPal executive David Sacks as “White House AI and crypto czar,” a newly created position.

With post wires