US sharpens tech war with China across AI, chips, biotech

Washington: As the Trump Administration expands its strategic competition with China across artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and biotechnology, top American lawmakers warned that the contest is not just technological but a “moral fight” that will shape global power and economic security.

At the Hill & Valley Forum in Washington, senior lawmakers outlined a multi-front strategy to counter China’s rise in critical technologies, combining export controls, domestic investment, and closer coordination with allies.

Senator Jim Banks framed the artificial intelligence race in stark geopolitical terms and said that the second Cold War is related to the AI race, adding, “We can’t let China win it. That’s the bottom line.”

He pointed to the Trump administration’s AI action plan, which calls for stricter export controls on advanced semiconductor chips to China and other adversaries. Banks said his proposed GAIN AI Act — already passed in the Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act — is central to tightening those restrictions.

“… we need to make sure that we’re not helping our biggest enemy… that’s the big picture on Capitol Hill,” he said.

Banks argued the stakes go beyond innovation or market leadership.

“This isn’t just a technological race… This is a moral fight. And we know that the PRC is going to lie, steal, and cheat,” he said.

He stressed that export controls must prevent adversaries from accessing cutting-edge American chips, while domestic demand should take priority.

“… when there is a domestic customer base in the United States of America, they should get priority for American-made chips over our biggest enemy,” Banks said.

Representative John Moolenaar, Chairman of the House Select Committee on China, echoed the need for a tougher posture, even as he acknowledged the tension with traditional US economic principles.

“I still think the best case is when you have the freedom to innovate… more free trade with free countries,” Moolenaar said.

But competition with China, he added, requires a shift.

“It requires almost like a defence mentality, where you’re saying, ‘Okay, let’s use every tool possible to make sure we win this competition,’” he said.

Moolenaar highlighted a critical vulnerability — US dependence on China in key supply chains adding, “ we’re actually dependent on our chief rival, and we have to stop enabling them to continue to defeat us on this,” he said.

He warned that adversaries could leverage American technology to accelerate their own capabilities, underscoring the need for stronger controls, supply chain resilience and workforce development.

The competition is also expanding into biotechnology, another sector increasingly viewed through a national security lens.

Senator Todd Young, Chairman of the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology, highlighted the importance of US leadership in the field and pointed to a comprehensive action plan submitted to Congress.

Young, speaking alongside ARPA-H Director Alicia Jackson and Curie.Bio Co-Founder Zach Weinberg, underscored the role of public-private collaboration in maintaining an edge in emerging technologies.

The discussions at the forum reflected a broader shift in Washington, where artificial intelligence, semiconductors and biotechnology are now seen as interconnected battlegrounds in strategic competition with China.

IANS