U.S. Imposes Export Controls on Biotechnology to China Over AI Security Risks

On Wednesday, the United States Department of Commerce announced it will implement new export controls on biotechnology equipment and related technology. These limitations are being implemented due to national security concerns associated with artificial intelligence and data science.

Washington is concerned that China may exploit technology from the United States to improve its military capabilities and assist in developing new weapons through artificial intelligence.

U.S. Commerce Department’s Latest Move to Restrict Exports to China

The department stated that the laboratory equipment might be used for “human performance enhancement, brain-machine interfaces, biologically inspired synthetic materials, and possibly biological weapons.”

The new export controls, which restrict shipments to China and other countries without a license from the United States, are for high-parameter flow cytometers and certain mass spectrometry equipment.

According to the Department of Commerce, these devices can “generate high-quality, high-content biological data, including that which is suitable for use to facilitate the development of artificial intelligence and biological design tools.”

Washington is attempting to limit technology transfer from the United States to China. To assist the United States in maintaining its dominating role in artificial intelligence by regulating it worldwide, the Department of Commerce took action on Monday to further restrict exports of artificial intelligence chips and technology from China.

Legislators in the United States have been considering many proposals to prevent foreign adversaries from accessing American citizens’ personal health and genetic information.

Additionally, they intend to encourage pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in the United States to reduce their reliance on China for everything from manufacturing drug ingredients to early research.

Concerns that Beijing could use the technology for military purposes prompted lawmakers in the United States to file a request to the Department of Commerce last week to consider banning the sale of biotechnology from the United States to the Chinese military.

During the previous week, the Chinese Embassy in Washington issued a statement that stated Beijing “firmly opposes any country’s development, possession, or use of biological weapons.”

In August, lawmakers from the United States requested that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) increase the scrutiny of clinical studies conducted in China.

They cited the potential for intellectual property theft and the prospect of coercing members of China’s Uyghur minority group to participate in the experiments.