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Export controls

Export controls are government rules that decide who may receive advanced AI chips, the tools to make them and, in some cases, AI models and services. In the US they are written by the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), and other governments, including Taiwan's and the EU's, run their own lists and licenses.

7 stories · updated Oct 26

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Key facts

Checked Oct 18

US rules and regulator: Export Administration Regulations, 15 CFR parts 730–774, administered by the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security
First US advanced computing chip controls: Released October 7, 2022; published October 13, 2022 as an interim final rule (87 FR 62186)
October 2023 update: Published October 25, 2023 (88 FR 73458), effective November 17, 2023; dropped interconnect bandwidth as a test, added a "performance density" threshold and License Exception Notified Advanced Computing (NAC)
Controlled AI chip classifications: ECCNs 3A090 and 4A090, plus related ".z" items in Categories 3, 4 and 5 (for example, servers classified as ECCN 5A992.z)
AI Diffusion Rule: Published January 15, 2025 (90 FR 4544), effective January 13, 2025; created ECCN 4E091 for the weights of certain closed-weight AI models trained with 10^26 or more operations
AI Diffusion Rule not enforced: BIS announced on May 13, 2025, that it would not enforce the rule and plans to publish a rescission and a replacement rule
Chips used to train models for D:5 parties: BIS policy statement, May 13, 2025: supplying advanced chips to cloud (IaaS) providers, or US-person support, may need a license under the catch-all controls when the work will train AI models for parties headquartered in Country Group D:5 (including China) or Macau and there is knowledge the model will be used for a WMD or military-intelligence end use or end user
Nvidia H200 policy for China: Final rule published and effective January 15, 2026 (91 FR 1684): license review for the H200, its equivalents and less advanced chips to China and Macau moved from a presumption of denial to case-by-case, subject to exporter certifications and US third-party testing
Chinese-headquartered buyers abroad: BIS guidance, May 31, 2026: a license is required to export advanced computing items to entities headquartered in Country Group D:5 or Macau, or whose ultimate parent is, even when the entity is located elsewhere; the requirement dates from November 17, 2023
United Arab Emirates: Final rule effective July 10, 2026 (91 FR 43034, published July 14, 2026) moved the UAE to Country Group A:5 and gave the UAE government and approved commercial entities license-free access to advanced computing items
Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 suspended: June 12, 2026: Anthropic says a US government export control directive suspended access by any foreign national, so it disabled both models for all customers
Controls on Fable 5 and Mythos 5 lifted: June 30, 2026, per Anthropic; Fable 5 available worldwide again from July 1, 2026
Taiwan's penalties (Foreign Trade Act): Article 27: up to five years in prison and/or a fine of up to NT$3,000,000 for unauthorized shipment of strategic high-tech goods to restricted regions. Article 27-2: administrative fine of NT$60,000 to NT$3,000,000 for unauthorized shipment to other regions
Taiwan's entity list: June 10, 2025 update added 601 entities, including Huawei and SMIC; exports to listed entities need a permit from the International Trade Administration
EU dual-use regulation: Regulation (EU) 2021/821, adopted May 20, 2021; control list (Annex I) updated by Commission delegated regulations
EU control list updates: Adopted September 8, 2025 (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2003) and September 14, 2026; both add advanced computing integrated circuits and electronic assemblies, plus semiconductor manufacturing equipment

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Policy · NewsIs Taiwan making AI chip smuggling to China a crime? What's confirmed about the plan, and what isn'tTaiwan plans to make smuggling AI chips and servers to China a crime by adding them to its Foreign Trade Act controls, but it isn't law yet. What Taiwan's economy ministry has confirmed since June 2026, what Bloomberg reported on October 16, and why prosecutors have had to use forgery charges until now.Oct 18·5 min read

Models · ExplainerWhy is Claude Fable 5 unavailable? The June export-control ban, its return, and what you can use nowWhy is Claude Fable 5 unavailable? The US government's June 12, 2026 export-control order forced Anthropic to switch it off worldwide. The ban was lifted on June 30 and Fable 5 came back on July 1. If you still can't pick it today, the cause is almost always your plan or usage credits.Oct 16·9 min read

Policy · NewsNvidia B300 chips on China Telecom's network? What Lava's GPU scan found, and what it doesn't proveNvidia B300 chips reported on China Telecom's network: security firm Lava said on October 22, 2026 that it found 32 Nvidia B300 GPUs reporting through IP addresses geolocated to China. The Information tied them to systems linked to China Telecom. Lava's own post doesn't name the operator and says the finding doesn't establish an export-control violation.Oct 24·5 min read

Latest on Export controls

Policy · NewsUS and Chinese AI blocs: how Washington is pressing countries to choose, and what's knownThe US and Chinese AI blocs are taking shape: the State Department's Pax Silica declaration has 25 listed signatories, and China's World AI Cooperation Organization was founded by 29 countries on July 16, 2026. On October 25, 2026, the AP reported that Washington says countries can't be trusted Pax Silica partners while engaging with a rival initiative. What's official and what's reported.Oct 26·5 min read

Industry · NewsDeepSeek's $15 billion funding round: Bloomberg and Reuters report the 100 billion yuan raise, days after the US federal ban was made publicDeepSeek's $15 billion funding round: Bloomberg reported on October 22, 2026 that DeepSeek has raised about 100 billion yuan, and Reuters reported the round was set to complete within days at about 500 billion yuan before the new money. It's the round 9to5AI first reported on October 16. DeepSeek hasn't confirmed it.Oct 24·4 min read

Policy · NewsAI lobbying in Q3 2026: Meta reported $5.88 million, Nvidia $2.15 million, Anthropic $2.11 million and OpenAI $1.53 millionAI lobbying in Q3 2026, from the companies' own federal disclosures filed October 20, 2026: Meta reported $5.88 million, Amazon $4.49 million, Google $3.23 million, Apple $3.09 million, Microsoft $2.44 million, Nvidia $2.15 million, Anthropic $2.11 million and OpenAI $1.53 million, and what each says it lobbied on.Oct 24·4 min read

Policy · NewsNvidia B300 chips on China Telecom's network? What Lava's GPU scan found, and what it doesn't proveNvidia B300 chips reported on China Telecom's network: security firm Lava said on October 22, 2026 that it found 32 Nvidia B300 GPUs reporting through IP addresses geolocated to China. The Information tied them to systems linked to China Telecom. Lava's own post doesn't name the operator and says the finding doesn't establish an export-control violation.Oct 24·5 min read

Policy · NewsDeepSeek banned in US federal agencies: what the DHS order requires, and where else DeepSeek is bannedDeepSeek is now banned in US federal civilian agencies. A Department of Homeland Security order, made public on October 19, 2026, bars agencies from buying DeepSeek products and requires them to remove existing ones, including third-party tools built on DeepSeek. What the order says, what it leaves out, and a dated list of the other governments that ban or restrict DeepSeek.Oct 20·7 min read

Policy · NewsIs Taiwan making AI chip smuggling to China a crime? What's confirmed about the plan, and what isn'tTaiwan plans to make smuggling AI chips and servers to China a crime by adding them to its Foreign Trade Act controls, but it isn't law yet. What Taiwan's economy ministry has confirmed since June 2026, what Bloomberg reported on October 16, and why prosecutors have had to use forgery charges until now.Oct 18·5 min read

Models · ExplainerWhy is Claude Fable 5 unavailable? The June export-control ban, its return, and what you can use nowWhy is Claude Fable 5 unavailable? The US government's June 12, 2026 export-control order forced Anthropic to switch it off worldwide. The ban was lifted on June 30 and Fable 5 came back on July 1. If you still can't pick it today, the cause is almost always your plan or usage credits.Oct 16·9 min read

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