Americans who knowingly use Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) models, like the wildly popular DeepSeek, could face up to 20 years behind bars if a new bill in the Senate sails through.
The bill, titled ‘Decoupling America’s Artificial Intelligence Capabilities from China Act,’ seeks to “protect America’s AI development from China.” Introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), it makes importing or exporting AI products to China illegal, doubling down on the American government’s ongoing efforts to stifle the Asian nation’s AI development.
“Every dollar and gig of data that flows into Chinese AI are dollars and data that will ultimately be used against the United States,” Sen. Hawley commented.
“America cannot afford to empower our greatest adversary at the expense of our own strength. Ensuring American economic superiority means cutting China off from American ingenuity and halting the subsidization of CCP innovation.”
It’s not the first time American legislators are cracking down on widely-used Chinese technology. Under Joe Biden, Congress banned TikTok—which has 170 million American users—although Trump has offered a reprieve and seems destined to reverse the ban.
However, while previous efforts merely banned specific apps, Sen. Hawley’s bill has more far-reaching consequences for Americans. Under penalties, it proposes that any person who willfully violates the bill should be subject to the strict provisions of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018.
This 2018 Act stipulates that violators shall be imprisoned for a term not exceeding 20 years, pay a fine not exceeding $1 million, or both. In effect, downloading DeepSeek on mobile app stores could result in a lengthy jail sentence, although experts say it’s unlikely to be enforced on the average American.
The new bill further prohibits American firms from collaborating on AI with their Chinese counterparts or conducting any research in the country. They face up to $100 million in fines if found in violation.
‘A step too far’
Some say the new bill is an overreach and has taken the tech war with China too far. Kevin Bankston, a senior advisor on AI at the Washington-based Center for Democracy & Technology, described the bill as “a broad attack on the very idea of scientific dialogue and technology exchange with China around AI.”
The bill could have “potentially ruinous penalties for AI researchers and users alike and deeply troubling implications for the future of online speech and freedom of scientific inquiry,” he added.
Bankston further noted that the bill intentionally uses vague language that could allow it to be stretched to activities not included in the original draft. This could include imposing penalties on researchers who publish AI research papers on the internet, “knowing they will be downloaded by people in China.”
Kit Walsh, the director of AI at the San Francisco-based digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation, also hit out at the new bill, which he says will impede open AI standards. Restricting the publishing of AI research to prevent China from access will “further solidify the dominance of proprietary AI over open or academic research,” he noted.
Some believe the bill’s overreach will even alienate the same American tech companies whose interests it claims to protect.
“The proposal is not realistic and reflects a series of misconceptions about the impact of US companies and researchers on the AI situation in China,” commented Paul Triolo, a partner at DGA-Albright Stonebridge Group, a consulting firm based in Washington.
Sen. Hawley’s bill is the latest attack on Chinese AI following the sudden implosion of DeepSeek, which, days after launch, was the most downloaded app on the App Store in the U.S. Its low-cost AI model, reportedly trained for less than $6 million, shocked American AI rivals and sparked a $1 trillion tech stocks route, with Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) shedding over $580 billion in a single day, a new record for a U.S. stock.
The bill would add to the existing restrictions on importing advanced chips to China, which the Biden administration enforced years ago. This forced chipmakers like Nvidia to only export outdated chips to China, making DeepSeek’s achievement all the more impressive.
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