The Trump administration wants Chinese hardware out of American data centres. Officials are drafting a ban on Chinese-made devices used in data centres, according to Reuters, the latest move to wall off the infrastructure behind the US AI buildout from Chinese technology.
The draft extends a campaign that has been widening fast. It follows a ban, unveiled days earlier, on new Chinese humanoid robots and power inverters, both cast as risks to critical infrastructure.
That earlier move set the template. US regulators added foreign robots and inverters to a restricted list over fears that Chinese-controlled devices could become supply-chain vulnerabilities or remote-access points.
Data centres are the natural next target. They are the physical core of the AI economy, packed with servers, networking gear, and power equipment, and Washington increasingly treats any Chinese component inside them as a liability.
The logic is control over the stack. If AI is a strategic asset, the argument runs, the machines that train and serve it should not depend on parts made by a rival that could, in theory, disrupt or surveil them.
