The US Department of Commerce could ban Amazon, Microsoft and Google from selling AI-related cloud computing services to Chinese companies, a new report said. The Commerce Department is preparing to bar US firms from providing cloud services that use advanced AI processors to Chinese customers, according to a report published this week by the Wall Street Journal. The Biden administration has already banned the export of advanced chips used in the development and training of AI from export to China, as part of the ongoing trade war between the two countries. In response, China’s government earlier this week banned two rare metals — gallium and germanium — which are used in the manufacture of important semiconductors. According to the Journal, the potential cloud computing restrictions are viewed by national security experts as the closure of a loophole that would have let Chinese companies obviate export restrictions on the chips themselves by paying for access to them via cloud services. Such a move by the Commerce Department would put some of the biggest technology companies in the world – namely Google, Microsoft and Amazon — squarely in the middle of the international trade dispute. A separate rules update, the Journal noted, will see the US unify its list of controlled silicon manufacturing equipment with Japan and the Netherlands, two of the increasing number of nations joining the US in restricting the sale of advanced technology as well as the import of Chinese equipment. The Department of Commerce did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Similar requests sent to Microsoft, Google, and Amazon — the largest three public cloud providers in the US — also went unanswered. The dispute began during the previous US presidential administration, with a ban on the use of networking hardware from several Chinese companies (most notably Huawei and ZTE) in government networks. Since 2015, however, the scope of the trade war has expanded substantially, with the US imposing increasingly severe measures. Proponents say that these measures are necessary to prevent technology theft and preserve the security of critical infrastructure from potential cyberattacks, as well as to preserve a technological edge. China, for its part, views these policies as protectionism and an unfair restraint on trade and development, though it has also begun to take similar measures in response. Beyond its recent ban on rare metal exports, the country has also banned products made by US memory chip manufacturer Micron from use in its networking infrastructure. Related content analysis With three zero-days, it’s a patch-now Patch Tuesday for May This is one of those months where it’s important to roll out Microsoft’s latest round of fixes as soon as you can. By Greg Lambert May 17, 2024 9 mins Microsoft Windows 10 Windows Security opinion Review: The M4 iPad Pro — an amazing AI PC Light, thin, and indiscreetly powerful, Apple's new iPad Pro will be seen as more than just a tablet once Apple introduces genAI in iPadOS. By Jonny Evans May 17, 2024 11 mins iPad Apple iOS news Citrix parent mulls selling ShareFile amid streamlining efforts The disinvestment of ShareFile is seen as a strategic move by Cloud Software Group to refocus on its core competencies. By Gyana Swain May 17, 2024 3 mins Citrix Systems Collaboration Software news Google brings Gemini AI to the classroom Google is making its Gemini AI assistant available for Workspace for Education customers beginning on May 23. By Matthew Finnegan May 17, 2024 4 mins Education Industry Generative AI Google Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe