US finalizes rule to block investments in China-based tech firms to protect AI, military development [Video]

The Biden administration this week finalized steps to block Americans from investing in a range of advanced technology, including artificial intelligence (AI), being developed in China.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday finalized a rule that stemmed from an August 2023 executive order issued by President Biden that looks to stop “countries of concern’’ — specifically China, including Hong Kong and Macao — from accessing American investments in developing technologies.

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The rule, which will take effect Jan. 2, was enacted in the interest of U.S. national security and covers three core tech areas, including semiconductors and microelectronics, quantum information technologies and certain AI systems, Reuters reported.

The department listed these “narrow set of technologies [as] core to the next generation of military, cybersecurity, surveillance, and intelligence applications.”

Paul Rosen, assistant Treasury secretary for investment security, said, “U.S. investments … must not be used to help …