I first encountered the strategic importance of technology restrictions while working in semiconductor manufacturing at Intel. Export licensing was part of the environment.
The underlying logic was straightforward: some technologies were considered too strategically important to be freely transferred to geopolitical competitors, including China. That logic has followed technology into the AI era.
Advanced NVIDIA GPUs have become subject to export restrictions affecting China, because access to high-end compute is now recognised as a strategic advantage. Yet China’s experience also demonstrates something important. Despite significant constraints, Chinese companies have continued to develop impressive AI systems, including models from DeepSeek and Moonshot AI.
There is, however, an important distinction between China and Africa. China has enormous pools of engineers, researchers, capital, industrial capacity, and technology infrastructure. Its challenge is partly about restrictions on access to the most advanced compute. Africa faces something more basic. We do not have enough compute.
Originally published by TechCabal.