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US lawmakers urge review of China threat from photonics technology

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers on Monday urged the Department of Commerce to examine national security threats from China's development of silicon photonics technology, a fast-developing field that could speed up artificial intelligence. At its core, silicon photonics relies on light, rather than electrical signals, to move information inside of computer systems and has uses in artificial intelligence systems where tens of thousands of computer chips are connected.

(Reuters) - A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers on Monday urged the Department of Commerce to examine national security threats from China's development of silicon photonics technology, a fast-developing field that could speed up artificial intelligence. Leading AI chip firms such as Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices have published research on how to integrate photonics into their chips, while Silicon Valley startup Lightmatter recently raised $400 million for its photonic technology, pushing the firm's value to $4.4 billion. "The dual-use nature of photonics technology makes it particularly susceptible to military end-use diversion by problematic actors," Representatives John Moolenaar, a Republican, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat, wrote in their letter.

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