Alexandra Alper and Christopher Bing
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Republican lawmakers have called on the Biden administration to conduct an intelligence assessment on Microsoft's $1.5 billion investment in United Arab Emirates (UAE) artificial intelligence (AI) company G42, citing concerns about sensitive technology transfers and G42's historical ties to China.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul and Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar requested the briefing in a letter Wednesday to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, the committees said.
Republicans said they would seek clarification about the agreement, announced in April, before moving to a second phase that would include the transfer of export-controlled semiconductor chips and model weights, advanced data that improves AI models' ability to mimic human reasoning.
The letter reflects growing concerns about the lack of controls on the export of sensitive AI models amid growing fears that companies like G42 could share valuable technology with U.S. adversaries like China.
“We remain deeply concerned by attempts to rush through a partnership that will involve an unprecedented transfer of highly sensitive U.S.-origin technology without consultation with Congress or clearly defined regulations,” the lawmakers said in the letter.
They called for the US to assess G42's ties to the Chinese Communist Party, military and government before any deal with Microsoft goes ahead. According to China's state-run Xinhua news agency, they cited the recent visit of UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to Beijing to discuss cooperation in AI.
Microsoft said in a statement that it works closely with the U.S. government and that “U.S. national security remains our top priority.” Spokespeople for the G42, the White House and the UAE Embassy did not respond to requests for comment.
“The United States has repeatedly obstructed cooperation between Chinese companies and other countries, citing security reasons,” the Chinese embassy said.
Concerns about China
A House Select Committee aide told reporters on a call Thursday that based on discussions with Microsoft, lawmakers expect the company to export “AI semiconductor chips and AI model weights to train the models, which are typically highly restricted.”
Microsoft President Brad Smith told Reuters in May that a deal with G42 could ultimately include the transfer of advanced chips and tools.
The Republican letter also cited G42's past “digital surveillance” activities as an area of possible risk. Aides highlighted previous ties between G42 staff and the United Arab Emirates-based cybersecurity firm Dark Matter, which was the subject of a Reuters investigation into cyberespionage in 2019.
The United States has grown increasingly concerned about Chinese influence in the Middle East and the United Arab Emirates, a longtime ally.
But in February, G42 announced it was withdrawing its investments from China and accepting U.S.-imposed restrictions on partnerships with American companies. G42's previous investments and partnerships in China included TikTok operator ByteDance, vaccine developer Sinopharm, and U.S.-blacklisted biotech company BGO Genomics.
The New York Times reported in April that the Microsoft-G42 deal was largely engineered by the Biden administration to lock out China. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told the paper that the Microsoft contract did not authorize the transfer of AI models or processors to G42 for the development of AI applications.
G42's shareholders include Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, the country's royal family and the U.S. private equity firm Silver Lake. G42's chairman, Sheikh Thanoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is the UAE's national security adviser and brother of the president.
Reuters reported in May that the Commerce Department was considering rules to restrict the export of proprietary, or closed-source, AI. Currently, there's nothing to stop US AI giants from selling AI to just about anyone in the world without government oversight.
(Reporting by Alexandra Alper and Christopher Bing; Editing by Lisa Shumaker, David Gregorio and Cynthia Osterman)