The Trump administration has recommended implementing location verification technology for advanced AI chips to prevent them from reaching foreign adversaries like China. The proposal, part of a broader AI blueprint released Wednesday, received bipartisan support from lawmakers who have introduced similar legislation to track semiconductors after they’re sold.
What you should know: The recommendation aims to ensure that advanced AI chips from companies like Nvidia and AMD don’t end up in restricted countries despite export controls.
- The administration wants to “explore leveraging new and existing location verification features on advanced AI compute to ensure that the chips are not in countries of concern.”
- The proposal was included in a broader AI blueprint that also aimed to boost AI exports to U.S. allies and relax environmental rules for AI data center construction.
- Key technical details about implementation costs and methods remain to be determined.
Bipartisan congressional support: Lawmakers from both parties who previously introduced chip security legislation praised the administration’s recommendation.
- Representative Bill Foster, an Illinois Democrat, said he was “encouraged to see that the recommended export control policy includes location verification mechanisms and aligns closely with our bipartisan Chip Security Act.”
- Senator Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, was “pleased to see verification included in President Trump’s AI Action Plan,” calling it “an important tool to keep advanced American technology out of the hands of Communist China.”
Why this matters: Current export controls rely on initial sale restrictions, but chips can potentially be redirected to banned countries through intermediaries or black market channels.
- Location verification would provide ongoing monitoring of where chips are actually being used, not just where they were initially shipped.
- The technology addresses concerns that advanced semiconductors are finding their way to China despite existing export bans designed to limit the country’s AI capabilities.
What’s next: Both the Trump administration’s recommendations and existing congressional bills will need to work out crucial implementation details.
- Questions remain about the technical mechanisms for location verification and the additional costs it would impose on chip manufacturers and users.
- Foster indicated he looks forward to “learning more of the technical details and next steps for end-use verification” as the policy develops.
Recent Stories
DOE fusion roadmap targets 2030s commercial deployment as AI drives $9B investment
The Department of Energy has released a new roadmap targeting commercial-scale fusion power deployment by the mid-2030s, though the plan lacks specific funding commitments and relies on scientific breakthroughs that have eluded researchers for decades. The strategy emphasizes public-private partnerships and positions AI as both a research tool and motivation for developing fusion energy to meet data centers' growing electricity demands. The big picture: The DOE's roadmap aims to "deliver the public infrastructure that supports the fusion private sector scale up in the 2030s," but acknowledges it cannot commit to specific funding levels and remains subject to Congressional appropriations. Why...
Oct 17, 2025Tying it all together: Credo’s purple cables power the $4B AI data center boom
Credo, a Silicon Valley semiconductor company specializing in data center cables and chips, has seen its stock price more than double this year to $143.61, following a 245% surge in 2024. The company's signature purple cables, which cost between $300-$500 each, have become essential infrastructure for AI data centers, positioning Credo to capitalize on the trillion-dollar AI infrastructure expansion as hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Elon Musk's xAI rapidly build out massive computing facilities. What you should know: Credo's active electrical cables (AECs) are becoming indispensable for connecting the massive GPU clusters required for AI training and inference. The company...
Oct 17, 2025Vatican launches Latin American AI network for human development
The Vatican hosted a two-day conference bringing together 50 global experts to explore how artificial intelligence can advance peace, social justice, and human development. The event launched the Latin American AI Network for Integral Human Development and established principles for ethical AI governance that prioritize human dignity over technological advancement. What you should know: The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, the Vatican's research body for social issues, organized the "Digital Rerum Novarum" conference on October 16-17, combining academic research with practical AI applications. Participants included leading experts from MIT, Microsoft, Columbia University, the UN, and major European institutions. The conference...