CSET’s making a splash this summer as media and think tanks seek out our researchers for their insights on issues at the intersection of national security and emerging technology. This month, they weighed in on the U.S. Justice Department’s China Initiative, semiconductor chip innovation, facial recognition technology and more. 

New York Times

Dutch company ASML Holding makes a cutting-edge machine for manufacturing semiconductors that is integral to global supply chains, offering U.S. policymakers a way to constrain China’s semiconductor industry, according to a New York Times article. Lobbied under the Trump administration, the Dutch government has continued to block the shipment of the machine to China since 2019. Research Analyst Will Hunt told The Times that a machine like this is made only by the Dutch firm, and it would take at least a decade for China to build on its own. “From China’s perspective, that is a frustrating thing,” Hunt noted. 

Wall Street Journal

Federal agencies could be banned by law from using facial recognition technology, the Wall Street Journal reported. Some members of Congress may not have the appetite to enact a blanket ban on technologies such as facial recognition that can be used to solve crimes, said Senior Fellow Andrew Lohn. “A ban such as this, that requires an act of Congress for exemption, is a big ask from lawmakers and constituents who also see the security and safety benefits that these techniques can offer,” Lohn noted.

Axios

The United States and China no longer dominate global scientific research, according to a CSET report by Melissa Flagg, Autumn Toney and Paul Harris. Axios explored how interconnected the U.S. and China are to other countries for collaboration on scientific research. The authors emphasized that “a one-size-fits-all approach to research security and international collaboration will not be effective.” For Flagg, “This idea of decoupling isn’t a choice we [U.S. leaders] make by ourselves. And it is a difficult choice to ask others to make.”

Reuters

Reuters spoke with Research Analyst Ryan Fedasiuk about the Cyberspace Administration of China’s (CAC) investigation and ban of the ride-hailing company Didi from Chinese app stores. Fedasiuk noted, “The [Chinese Communist] Party had previously targeted Ant Group, which was planning an IPO and was forced to cancel. But this step is an escalation because it is retroactive, effectively punishing investors that participated in a completed IPO. The CAC commenced review and suspended Didi’s presence on Chinese app stores just days after its public debut.” Reuters also contacted Senior Fellow Anna Puglisi this month to discuss the national security implications on the Chinese military’s use of genetic data from the BGI Group’s prenatal tests. “The Chinese state can really compel, in their national security law, companies to work with them,” said Puglisi. 

Lawfare

Research Analyst Emily Weinstein offered her expertise in two Lawfare opinion pieces. Together with co-author Jordan Brunner, she provided a primer on the Biden administration’s sanctions against China for its military-civil fusion strategy. In another piece, Weinstein and co-author Ainikki Riikonen argued that the U.S. Department of Justices’ China Initiative is counterproductive to U.S. innovation and offered recommendations to improve research security.

Brookings Institution

The Brookings Institution’s new book Global China, co-edited by CSET alumnus Tarun Chhabra, assesses the global implications of China’s rise as a global actor. The book includes reports by CSET’s Dahlia Peterson and Saif Khan. Co-authored with Carrick Flynn, Khan’s report focuses on maintaining China’s independence on democracies for advanced semiconductor chips. Peterson’s report with Jame Millward analyzes China’s use of surveillance technology in Xinjiang. 

The Diplomat

Drawing from her previous report “Mapping India’s AI Potential,” Research Analyst Husanjot Chahal highlighted how India’s tech talent diaspora to the United States is a win-win for U.S.-India relations and AI aspirations in an opinion piece for The Diplomat. India’s tech talent diaspora has the potential to bolster U.S. and Indian progress in AI through collaborative research. In fact, Indian students studying in the United States make up 14 percent of international students, and 11 percent of first-generation immigrants from India are founders of the top 50 AI startups. 

CSET Experts Spotlight: Emily Weinstein

Emily Weinstein focuses on Chinese innovation and domestic S&T policies and development. 

Her CSET publications include China’s Foreign Technology Wish List, Assessing the Scope of U.S. Visa Restrictions on Chinese Students, Chinese State Budget Council Tracker, and the Chinese Talent Program Tracker. Her work has appeared in Lawfare, Reuters, University World News, Fortune and China Talk. 

Interested in speaking with Emily or our other experts? Contact External Affairs Specialist Adrienne Thompson at Adrienne.Thompson@georgetown.edu 

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