US lawmakers seek to undercut Chinese AI and tech sales abroad

By Alexandra Alper

WASHINGTON, May 19 (Reuters) - ‌U.S. senators from ​both ​parties will unveil a bill on Tuesday aimed at countering Chinese sales of AI tools overseas, according to a copy seen by Reuters.

The ‌legislation, sponsored by Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Republican ⁠Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, would create an office within the State Department to subsidize purchases by allied ‌governments of U.S. technology and ‌streamline the procurement process. If passed, a fund worth $500 million would be created to help finance the program.

The bill, details of which Reuters is reporting for ​the first time, would seek to bolster the Trump administration's Pax Silica initiative. That effort aims to reduce dependence on China and strengthen cooperation among ⁠allies by securing access to critical minerals and other key AI supply chain inputs.

"Our competition with China is centered on ​our ability to develop and promote technologies of the future to our partners," Shaheen said in a statement. "This legislation sends a ​message to the world: the United States will ‌compete on technology, and we can offer a better deal,” she added.

The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to ⁠a request for comment.

The legislative effort also comes as China poured a record $213 billion last year into its Belt and Road initiative, its flagship overseas infrastructure program, according to research by ⁠Australia's Griffith University and the Green Finance & Development Center in Shanghai.

Unveiled by President Xi Jinping in ​2013, that initiative aims to boost trade, absorb overcapacity, secure supply chains and project influence with more than 150 countries and international organizations.

The U.S. bill would seek to ease foreign government ‌procurement of U.S. AI models, chips and other related software and hardware, as well as telecoms equipment, cybersecurity products, biotechnology, and ‌cloud computing systems among other things.

"Unlike Communist China, our technology is proven, reliable, and ⁠secure," Ricketts said in a statement. ‌The legislation, if passed, "will reduce ​vulnerabilities from foreign adversaries and ensure U.S. and allied tech supremacy,” he added.

(Reporting by Alexandra Alper in WashingtonEditing by Bill Berkrot and ‌Mark Porter)

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