Flagship

US issues new AI chip export controls

The Biden administration’s new rules to curtail other nations’ access to advanced artificial intelligence chips sparked frustration within the industry. The controls, announced Monday, put limits on AI semiconductor exports to 120 countries, including some of Washington’s close trading partners. They are aimed at stopping China — which already faces restrictions on AI chip purchases — from obtaining the tech from other nations. But US chip giant Nvidia, whose stock fell on news of the curbs, said the regulation is merely “cloaked in the guise of an ‘anti-China’ measure” and wouldn’t enhance US security. Incoming President Donald Trump has promised an aggressive approach to Beijing and can decide whether to enforce the rules.

How China views Trump’s approach

Donald Trump’s China stance may not differ widely from Joe Biden’s, but Beijing should nevertheless brace for a more confrontational Washington, leading Chinese political observers said. At a panel talk in Beijing on Sunday, Peking University professor Wang Jisi said China has an opportunity to effectively call Trump’s bluff on the “bluster” he injects into foreign policy, and find avenues for cooperation. Tsinghua University’s Yan Xuetong said the president-elect will “inherit Biden’s China policy and push it to the extreme. The intensity of opposition will increase.” Meanwhile, writing in a pro-China outlet, prominent scholar Di Dongsheng advocated for a more combative Beijing, saying it should wield economic firepower to enrich allies “while making our adversaries poorer.”

Biden defends foreign policy record

Joe Biden defended his foreign policy record, saying in a speech that the US “is winning the worldwide competition.” Biden hopes to use his last days in office to bolster his legacy by highlighting the strengthening of US alliances in Europe and Asia — and possibly securing a Gaza ceasefire deal. His term was marked by global turbulence, with wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. Many of the president’s biggest wins were domestic, but the stabilization of ties with China is one notable foreign policy success, Eurasia Group’s Ian Bremmer wrote in a note to clients. That was marked by a “no surprises” policy, “an effort by both countries to proactively tell each other when there was a problem.”

Gaza ceasefire talks at critical stage

Israel and Hamas inched closer to a hostage and ceasefire deal Monday. Mediators are reportedly awaiting a response from both sides to the final draft of an agreement that would see Hamas release 33 hostages, after talks in Qatar resulted in what an Israeli official described as a “breakthrough.” The momentum marks “the first sign of serious optimism in months,” CNN noted, as Donald Trump’s inauguration next week upped the pressure for a deal. Trump’s Middle East envoy participated in negotiations alongside Joe Biden’s team, conveying a consensus between administrations. Still, challenges remain: Israel’s far-right finance minister said he wouldn’t back any truce to stop the war, in what a Haaretz journalist called a “last-minute wrecking ball” for negotiations.

Iran resumes nuclear talks in Geneva

European powers resumed talks with Iran over its nuclear program, which is under renewed focus as Donald Trump returns to power. The discreet discussions in Geneva involving the UK, France, and Germany were the second in less than two months; the meeting followed European criticism that Iran is growing its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to “unprecedented levels” — as well as a report in The Times that Tehran is leaning on Russia to bolster its nuclear program. But experts said a weakened Iran could be open to nuclear talks under Trump, who has reportedly considered preemptive airstrikes to contain Tehran. “There is a narrow window where the regime will be eager to negotiate and Trump will have momentum,” one expert said.

Apple urges investors to keep DEI

Apple became the latest US tech giant to grapple with the future of its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. The company’s board of directors urged shareholders to vote against a proposal submitted by a conservative think tank to abolish its diversity efforts. The debate at Apple comes amid a broader Big Tech backlash against DEI, part of a move to align more closely with incoming US President Donald Trump’s values: Amazon is scaling back some initiatives, while Meta is killing major programs altogether. The latter is “a strong signal… that the company’s push to make inroads with the incoming Trump administration isn’t just posturing, but an ethos shift,” Axios wrote.

Moving beyond identifying barriers to achieving practical, scalable interventions — The Next 3 Billion at Davos will discuss emphasizing collaboration between public and private sectors to mobilize resources and technology for global good.

Semafor’s Yinka Adegoke will moderate a conversation with Phuti Mahanyele-Dabengwa, CEO of Naspers South Africa, to discuss digital upskilling and inclusion.

Jan. 23, 2025 | Davos, Switzerland | Request Invitation

Durian boom sparks ‘mafia’ tactics

Booming Chinese demand for durian has put growing pressure on the Thai farming industry. China’s imports of the fruit were worth $1.6 billion in 2019, but volumes quadrupled by 2024. The “king of fruits,” famous for its strong smell, is a delicacy, and prices are way up: Before the boom, one durian sold for around $2.30. Now, it’s more like $8.60. The demand has prompted “mafia-like tactics” among Chinese dealers who are trying to push farmers’ prices down, NZZ reported. But it has also brought new prosperity to the Thai region that grows them, and the industry is expanding. “More and more Southeast Asian countries are now entering the lucrative stinky fruit business.”

Drone reveals ‘mega fortress’ details

Drone mapping is reshaping archeological research. Researchers used a drone to take 11,000 images of a suspected Bronze Age fortress in Georgia’s Caucasus Mountains, allowing them to detect and map features invisible from ground level. The method showed that the site is 40 times larger than previously thought, with an outer wall more than half a mile long. Earlier maps used images from a Cold War spy satellite, but drones are cheaper and more scalable. They “allowed us to understand the significance of the site,” one researcher said, which is considerable: The “mega fortress” is by far the largest Bronze Age structure in the region.

UK gives too many standing ovations

London theatergoers are doling out standing ovations too generously, The Economist lamented. “Even when the show is a dud,” audiences instinctively rise to their feet at the end of the performance, the magazine wrote, complaining particularly about Sigourney Weaver’s “bland” turn in a new staging of The Tempest. Customary standing ovations have been standard in New York for years — Nicole Scherzinger received four during one show in her current Sunset Boulevard Broadway run — but were rarer in London. Higher ticket prices and post-pandemic glee over the return of live theater are to blame for “ovation inflation,” The Economist wrote. But it conceded that “a bit of self-congratulation may be a permissible indulgence in a gloomy world.”

Prized Turner watercolor discovered

A painting submitted for an online valuation by a member of the public was revealed to be a JMW Turner worth up to $500,000. The Approach to Venice had belonged to an English family since the 1930s, but was believed to be by the polymath John Ruskin. When submitted to Christie’s, though, a specialist in British art said the “strong brushstrokes, economy of line and the palette” hinted strongly that it was by the landscapist Turner, whose works are 10 times as valuable as Ruskin’s. Readers should not be encouraged to think that unidentified paintings in their own homes might be by an Old Master, though: The Christie’s specialist told The Art Newspaper that “things like this just don’t happen.”

Jan. 14:

• NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte meets with Baltic leaders to discuss the sabotage of critical infrastructure.
• South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol is expected to miss the first hearing in his impeachment trial.
• Saudi Arabia’s Future Minerals Forum begins.

Museums in Italy are offering free dog-sitting to boost visitor numbers. The service, which sees trained minders feed and walk the pets while their owners roam freely inside, went live Sunday at four sites in Rome, including the Ara Pacis Museum and the Castel Sant’Angelo, and will tour other major tourist spots over the next 15 months, The Times of London reported. Only a third of Italian residents visited a museum or exhibition in 2023 — with many reportedly refraining because they don’t want to leave their furry friends at home. “Dog-sitting at museums is positive because it means people do not need to choose between their pets and art,” an Italian archaeology professor said.

Republicans in Congress are locked in a fight over a tax bill that many estimate will take months to resolve, Semafor’s Burgess Everett reported. The unresolved tax fights are politically sensitive: How much of Trump’s campaign promises to slash taxes on tips and Social Security benefits can be included?