US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant told his Treasury secretary during their meeting in Washington this week that the US is reconsidering restrictions on the export of artificial intelligence chips to Israel. “Don’t be surprised if the policy changes soon.”

In January, the Biden administration announced restrictions on the sale of advanced chips, including artificial intelligence chips, to a number of countries, including Israel: “The goal is to protect American technology and prevent it from falling into the wrong hands” – with the fear being that the information could be transferred to Russia and China.

Israel was included on the list alongside countries such as Mexico, Poland and India. In contrast, 18 countries, including France, Germany, Ireland and the UK, were classified as “close allies” and were exempt from these restrictions. The restrictions imposed by the administration could make it difficult for Israel’s defense industries to work on critical technological developments.

The issue has been raised in recent weeks by senior Israeli officials in their meetings with their American counterparts. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich told me that Biden’s decision to include Israel on the list was not based on objective considerations. “It has to do with their criticism of the war,” the minister said.

Source: Amichai Stein - Telegram