U.S. Withdraws AI-Chip Rule
The U.S. government revoked a controversial AI hardware export rule that would have forced foreign companies to invest in U.S. manufacturing, while new draft export-control proposals for semiconductors and accelerators are reportedly circulating reported. The reversal leaves policy in flux and keeps global supply-chain strategies for AI hardware uncertain.
The Commerce Department withdrew the planned AI‑chip export rule on March 13, 2026, according to a government posting reported by Reuters. yahoo.com The Office of Management and Budget’s online docket was updated to show the interagency review had concluded and the draft measure was formally withdrawn, Bloomberg reported. bloomberg.com Reuters and other outlets say the draft had been circulated to other agencies for feedback in late February as part of a broader rewrite of the U.S. export control approach. yahoo.com Bloomberg and TechCrunch reported the pulled draft would have required U.S. licenses for virtually all AI accelerator exports and set case‑by‑case reviews keyed to end‑user computing needs and government‑to‑government assurances. bloomberg.com Tom’s Hardware published specifics from the reported proposals, citing a multi‑tier licensing scheme with expedited review for shipments up to about 1,000 Nvidia GB300 GPUs and a threshold near 200,000 GB300 GPUs that would trigger investment commitments and intergovernmental talks. tomshardware.com
