Amazon and Microsoft Back Legislation to Limit Nvidia Exports to China

The Wall Street Journal reported that Amazon has joined Microsoft in backing proposed legislation known as the GAIN AI Act, an initiative intended to further restrict the ability of chipmaker Nvidia to sell high performance chips to China. The report said the legislation is also supported by AI startup Anthropic. The involvement of leading cloud providers marks a notable development in the intersection between corporate commercial interests and U.S. policy on strategic technology exports.

Nvidia’s graphics processing units are widely used to train and run large scale artificial intelligence models, making them a focal point in debates over how to prevent advanced capabilities from flowing to potential adversaries. Washington has already tightened export controls on advanced semiconductors in recent years, citing national security concerns. The new legislative push would move the debate further into the political arena, adding congressional weight to regulatory and administrative tools previously deployed by the executive branch.

For Amazon and Microsoft the decision to back restrictions is significant because both companies operate extensive cloud computing businesses that depend on access to leading edge processors. They also compete for customers within China and across Asia, markets that represent substantial commercial opportunity. Their public or private support for tighter controls suggests that at least some firms view longer term strategic alignment with U.S. policy as preferable to unfettered commercial access, or that they anticipate compliance costs and regulatory complexity that make a formal stance necessary.

Anthropic’s backing highlights concerns from the AI startup community about compute availability and responsible development. The company joins larger technology firms in a rare alignment with restrictive export policy, reflecting the high stakes of governing AI infrastructure that underpins new generations of services and military applications.

The proposed restriction would likely have immediate market effects. Nvidia could see reduced sales to Chinese customers, accelerating a shift in its revenue composition. Chinese cloud providers and research institutions that rely on foreign GPUs for AI training could face supply constraints, prompting a renewed focus on domestic chip development and procurement strategies. For the global semiconductor supply chain, further U.S led controls may encourage investment diversification, with suppliers and customers seeking alternatives in Taiwan, South Korea, Europe, and within China itself.

On the diplomatic front, tighter export limits could heighten technology tensions between Washington and Beijing. Previous rounds of controls prompted Chinese officials to accelerate indigenous semiconductor programs and to explore retaliatory trade measures. Any legislative action will also raise questions under international trade law and could face scrutiny at multilateral forums.

Details about the GAIN AI Act and the scope of companies operations covered by the proposed measures were not disclosed in the Journal report. Lawmakers will need to reconcile national security arguments with the commercial realities of a highly integrated global technology ecosystem. As Congress and industry weigh next steps, the debate over chips to China is becoming a test case for how the United States seeks to balance innovation leadership, corporate interests, and geopolitical competition in the age of artificial intelligence.