When President Donald Trump sits down with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington this week, the agenda will be crowded.
asserted
agenda → sit → Washington
But looming over all of it is a technological competition that could shape the balance of economic and military power for decades: artificial intelligence.
uncertain
that → loom → decades
And increasingly, the battle isn't simply about who builds the best AI model.
asserted
who → build → model
It is about who controls the chips, computing infrastructure and technology ecosystem underneath it.
asserted
who → control → it
America remains the global leader in advanced AI technology and semiconductor design.
asserted
America → remain → technology
But China is pushing aggressively to reduce its dependence on American technology, and Huawei has emerged as one of the most important companies in that effort.
asserted
Huawei → push → effort
That should have Washington's full attention.
asserted
That → have → attention
For years, the United States has used export controls to restrict China's access to advanced semiconductors and semiconductor-manufacturing technology, particularly technologies with potential military applications.
asserted
States → use → applications
Those restrictions had a clear national-security objective: prevent America's most sophisticated technology from strengthening a strategic competitor's military capabilities.
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restrictions → have → capabilities
China accelerated its effort to build an AI ecosystem that doesn't need America.
asserted
that → accelerate → America
Huawei expanded its Ascend AI-chip roadmap.
asserted
Huawei → expand → roadmap
Chinese developers adapted software and models to domestic hardware.
asserted
developers → adapt → hardware
Chinese companies poured resources into computing systems capable of compensating for some of the performance limitations of individual Chinese chips.
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companies → pour → chips
And Huawei isn't standing still.
asserted
Huawei → stand → ?
The company recently said demand for its AI computing equipment in China is exceeding supply.
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demand → say → supply
It is accelerating future generations of its Ascend processors and developing enormous computing systems capable of connecting vast numbers of chips.
asserted
It → accelerate → chips
That means the strategic question facing Washington has changed.
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question → mean → Washington
The question isn't simply: How do we keep sensitive American technology away from China?
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we → keep → China
It is also: How do we make sure the rest of the world continues choosing American technology instead of China's?
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rest → make → China
Those are related questions, but they aren't identical.
asserted
they → relate → ?
If American technology becomes inaccessible across too much of the global market, China has an enormous incentive to develop substitutes.
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China → become → substitutes
Huawei has an enormous incentive to sell them.
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Huawei → have → them
And governments and companies around the world have an enormous incentive to build around whatever technology they can reliably obtain.
asserted
they → have → technology
Once developers write software for an ecosystem, companies construct computing infrastructure around it and countries invest billions deploying it
asserted
countries → write → it
, switching becomes much harder.
asserted
switching → become → ?
America wants a world running on American chips, American software, American standards and American innovation.
asserted
America → want → chips
China wants to build an alternative.
asserted
China → want → alternative
It wants a world in which Huawei and other Chinese companies provide a technology stack that Beijing controls and America cannot easily influence.
asserted
America → want → that
President Trump has taken a different approach from the Biden administration.
asserted
Trump → take → administration
His administration rescinded the Biden-era AI Diffusion Rule while maintaining controls targeting technologies with serious national-security implications.
asserted
administration → rescind → implications
The administration has also allowed certain advanced chips to be considered for sale to approved Chinese customers under licensing requirements and security conditions.
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chips → allow → requirements
The theory is straightforward: protect the technologies most critical to national security without unnecessarily surrendering commercial markets to Chinese competitors.
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theory → protect → competitors
That distinction matters.
asserted
distinction → matter → ?
Nobody serious is arguing that America should simply hand China unrestricted access to technology that could materially enhance advanced weapons, military AI, surveillance or other sensitive capabilities.
uncertain
that → argue → weapons
National security comes first.
asserted
security → come → ?
But there is a difference between protecting America's crown-jewel technology and adopting restrictions so sweeping that they accelerate China's determination to replace American technology throughout the commercial market.
asserted
they → be → market
Because Huawei's goal isn't merely to survive American restrictions.
asserted
goal → survive → restrictions
Huawei wants to compete.
asserted
Huawei → want → ?
It wants Chinese chips powering Chinese AI.
asserted
It → want → AI
It wants Chinese computing infrastructure supporting Chinese models.
asserted
It → want → models
…and 30 more, not listed.
The Aporia
