Countries must pick sides in the U.S. AI race with China

The U.S. is preparing to tell dozens of countries they must ‌pick sides in the artificial intelligence race with China, warning they will be excluded from a U.S.-led AI coalition if they also sign up for Beijing’s competing framework. By pressing countries to choose sides the U.S. hopes to starve China of resources in a race to make the most sophisticated AI, which could be used for military ​or economic dominance. China has used its current near-monopolies ​over critical minerals as a ⁠retaliatory weapon in a tariff war launched last year by U.S. President Donald Trump, who has ramped up U.S. efforts to source the minerals domestically and from allies.

The Pax Silica agreement aims to push U.S. allies and partners toward joint projects and export controls, and ultimately reduce reliance on adversaries for critical minerals, AI models and the semiconductor chips that power them amid a fierce technology rivalry with Beijing. About two ​dozen countries have joined, including Kazakhstan, Japan, Australia and South Korea.

“To be part of everything is to be part of nothing. Signature of the Pax Silica Declaration is not merely a ​membership subscription, but a commitment,” the letter says, urging countries to “choose deliberately” on AI. U.S. officials make clear that “you can’t have it both ​ways. A country cannot credibly position itself asa  trusted partner in one technology ecosystem ​while simultaneously signing up for an initiative designed by China to advance a competing vision for AI”.