Trump’s AI Chip Export Push Stymied by Bureaucratic Bottleneck

President Donald Trump’s goal of significantly boosting global sales of American AI chips risks being undermined by licensing bottlenecks, staffing attrition and a lack of policy direction at the federal agency that oversees exports of billions of dollars in sensitive US technology.

Within the past year, a small but powerful office nestled within the Commerce Department — the Bureau of Industry and Security — has taken on a growing pile of bureaucratic tasks central to Trump’s economic agenda. Those include vetting Nvidia Corp.’s bid to export its coveted processors to the Middle East and China and leading a wave of industry probes to decide the scope of his tariffs on sectors ranging from autos to steel.