Why Are We Arming Our Adversary in the AI Race?

Imagine if, during the space race with the Soviet Union, General Electric and Boeing, storied American giants in the space race, had been selling key components designed for Apollo 11 to the Russians. There would have been national outcry.

Our companies built and fueled NASA’s race to the moon. While national pride was a big factor, another, less-prominent feature was the impact of export controls on strategic exports to the Soviet bloc under the Export Control Act of 1949.

Between this statutory restriction and the Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (CoCom), also established in 1949 to organize American allies in restricting sales of dual-use technologies, American companies were essentially prohibited from selling strategic aviation components to the USSR.

Restricting the sale of strategic dual-use technologies to America’s rivals just makes sense. Why arm your adversary?

Now fast-forward to today. We are again facing near-peer competition, except the stakes are much higher as artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes the landscape of work, technology, and national security. Yet, our national champions now choose to identify as “global” corporations, disavowing their natural responsibility to support the national interests of their home nation, instead choosing to focus on international dividends and worldwide clientele.

The argument goes that being pro-free markets means that our nation’s leading AI chip and components manufacturers—those who make specially engineered microchips for AI computing—must sell to the highest bidder, even if that means going to entities controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

This line of thinking was historically rebuffed by both Republican and Democratic presidents, who recognized the dire national security and economic consequences of selling our most advanced chips to our top adversary.

Leading the charge in pushing for creative solutions to bolster our export control regime today has been the U.S. House’s Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party under Chairman John Moolenaar. Chairman Moolenaar has been a leading voice in urging his colleagues to address the threat to American national interests posed by a China-dominated AI industry, including semiconductor manufacturing.

The Select Committee has praised several pieces of legislation now circulating on Capitol Hill that would strengthen America’s hand against the CCP in the all-important AI race, which Heritage Action has joined in supporting.

The Chip Security Act is bipartisan legislation led by Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., and Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., aimed at preventing advanced AI chips from being smuggled to or diverted to adversarial nations, primarily China. It requires exporters to implement “chip security mechanisms” such as location tracking devices on advanced semiconductors to ensure they remain in authorized locations. We should be able to sell American AI chips to friendly nations and rest peacefully knowing that they are not going to be smuggled to China.

The AI Overwatch Act, sponsored by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., and led in the Senate by Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., codifies President Donald Trump’s prohibition on the sale to China of Nvidia’s best chips—Blackwell, H200, and Rubin—to ensure that AI chip exports to foreign adversaries do not undermine the U.S. domestic market for advanced chips.

This America First policy does not forget our allies. It mandates safeguards to ensure AI chip exports to countries of concern will not enhance the military, intelligence, surveillance, or cyber capabilities of U.S. adversaries, allowing us to fast-track AI exports to allies and trusted partners. Importantly, this bill recognizes the need for continued vigilance by bolstering congressional oversight of AI chip sales in the same mold as congressional oversight over arms sales.

The Multilateral Alignment of Technology Controls on Hardware (MATCH) Act from Rep. Michael Baumgartner, R-Wash., and Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., is the flagship legislation on semiconductor manufacturing equipment (SME) controls.

This bill would direct the State Department to conduct diplomacy with allies to prevent China from obtaining advanced SME. The bill would also create controls on the most important chokepoint SME components that China does not have the know-how to make domestically, and it would initiate controls on all items related to advanced-node fabrication facilities of concern in China. If diplomacy with allies is unsuccessful, it requires the Department of Commerce to use punitive measures to close remaining gaps.

These commonsense, bipartisan pieces of legislation present a strong step forward toward an America ready to play to win in the AI race and should be considered as part of this year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which sets national defense spending and policy priorities each year.

This is not an appeal for companies to rally around the flag against their shareholders’ interests, but for American lawmakers to start rallying around the interests of their constituents who elected them.

While not every American could participate in the Apollo missions, every American was a part of the mission in spirit. Today, every American with a smartphone has AI capabilities in their pocket, a tangible reminder of the reach of this technology. It’s time for Congress to meet the moment and ensure America keeps its lead in the AI race.