Commerce Secretary Nominee Wants US to ‘Stop Helping’ China on AI
The U.S. should prevent China from obtaining American technology it can use to advance its artificial intelligence capabilities, Commerce secretary nominee Howard Lutnick said Jan. 29.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
Lutnick, chairman and CEO of investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald, lamented the ability of Chinese startup DeepSeek to develop an advanced new AI model using chips made by U.S.-based Nvidia (see 2501280052).
“I take a very jaundiced view of China,” Lutnick testified at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee. “I think they only care about themselves and seek to harm us, and so we need to protect ourselves. We need to drive our innovation and we need to stop helping them. If they’re going to compete with us, let them compete but stop using our tools to compete with us. So I'm going to be very strong on that."
The committee's ranking member, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said the Bureau of Industry and Security's responsibility to control dual-use technology exports "just got a lot bigger" with the DeepSeek revelation. "The issue of export controls and this organization, BIS, within the Department of Commerce is going to be a very big issue for you," she told Lutnick.
Cantwell praised former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo for being a "standout" in implementing export controls and for trying to build consensus in the private sector on how to deal with export issues. "I hope you will follow that lead," she urged the nominee.
Also during the hearing, Lutnick said he would seek to remove unfair barriers to U.S. exports, such as automobiles. “The fact that we, Americans, cannot sell an American car in Europe is just wrong and it needs to be fixed,” he said. “While they’re our ally, they are taking advantage of us.”
He would take the same approach on steak and other food items. Although American “steaks are so much more beautiful” than European ones, European countries “make up this nonsense set of rules so that our ranchers can’t sell there, our farmers can’t sell there,” he said. “We need to change those rules. We need to end the disrespect that our farmers, ranchers and fishermen have to suffer with. I am going to help our farmers, ranchers and fishermen be successful around the world.”
In response to Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., who criticized the Biden administration’s digital trade policies, Lutnick said he would seek to advance strong digital trade rules and support U.S. digital exporters.
Asked by Cantwell about his company’s ties to cryptocurrency firm Tether, whose stablecoin is allegedly used in Chinese, North Korea and Russia for illicit activity, Lutnick said that Tether follows federal law enforcement guidance and isn’t disproportionately used by bad actors compared with its stablecoin competitors or with physical money. To avoid any conflicts of interest in his government role, he plans to sell all of his business interests within 90 days of his Senate confirmation.
The Commerce Committee plans to vote on Lutnick’s nomination next week, committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told reporters after the hearing. Donald Trump announced his selection of Lutnick in November (see 2411190036) and formally nominated him Jan. 20 after he became president.