G42在與微軟交易前, 與美國達成秘密協議從中國撤資

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

G42 Made Secret Pact with US to Divest from China Before Microsoft Deal

Ben Bartenstein, Mackenzie Hawkins, Nick Wadhams and Dina Bass

Mon, April 15, 2024 at 10:26 p.m. PDT

(Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp.’s just-announced partnership with Abu Dhabi’s G42 followed behind-the-scenes negotiations between the US government and the Middle Eastern firm, which agreed to divest from China and pivot to American technology.

G42, a holding company focused on artificial intelligence, held talks with the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security and came to an understanding last year, according to people familiar with the discussions. Under the arrangement, G42 agreed to pare back its presence in China or face potentially punitive measures from Washington, they said.

The talks were part of a broader effort by the Biden administration to rein in China’s technological prowess and line up support around the world. G42 is backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, an influential member of Abu Dhabi’s ruling family, and looks to become an AI superpower in the Middle East.

G42 Chief Executive Officer Peng Xiao told Bloomberg News in February that the firm would divest from China, but the details behind that decision weren’t public. According to the people familiar with the talks, US officials — led by BIS, with the blessing of the National Security Council — approached the UAE last summer and told executives they would have to choose between the US or China.

The BIS negotiations involved Xiao, Sheikh Tahnoon, UAE Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba, and veteran Paul Hastings lawyer Marty Edelman, who serves as G42’s general counsel.

A representative for BIS declined to comment. In a statement, a G42 spokesman said that the divestment decision stemmed from a desire “to partner with the most sophisticated AI technology companies in the world — the ones in the US and, in some cases, Europe.”

“Geopolitical factors affect every international business, including ours,” the spokesman said. The chance to work with Microsoft and its partner OpenAI “were authentic economic and technological transformative opportunities for us. Clearly these opportunities required a movement away from Chinese relationships, equipment and services, and we are in the process of making that transition in a verifiable way.”

In exchange for the Chinese divestment, G42 was assured that it would have continued access to US technology that powers AI applications, one of the people said. That includes chips from Nvidia Corp. But the agreement came at considerable cost to G42, according to one of the people, because it had to remove some Chinese technology from its systems.

The divestment plan also helped lay the groundwork for Microsoft to invest $1.5 billion in G42 — an agreement announced Tuesday. As part of that pact, Microsoft President Brad Smith will join the board of G42, which will use the software maker’s Azure cloud for its AI applications. The agreement, which builds on an existing partnership, was reached after consultation with the UAE and US governments.

G42, the largest AI company in the UAE, came under scrutiny from Congress in recent months, with a key lawmaker calling for sanctions over its ties to blacklisted Chinese businesses Huawei Technologies Co. and Beijing Genomics Institute. The firm “categorically” denied that it had “connections to the Chinese government and their military industrial complex.”

The deal with the Biden administration followed warnings from the State Department and elsewhere that putting G42 on an export blacklist would be catastrophic for the US-UAE relationship. The firm, which aims to apply AI to everything from medicine to space exploration, is a prized asset of Sheikh Tahnoon. The G42 spokesman said that US officials didn’t threaten sanctions during the talks.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo visited the UAE in March to discuss G42’s progress in shifting away from China, among other topics, according to some of the people.

It’s the latest example of Washington’s increased focus on AI and semiconductor ambitions in the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are both vying to become major tech hubs.

The Commerce Department expanded export controls last year on semiconductor technology. It now requires a license for the sale of advanced chips and tools to countries that officials worry China could use as intermediaries to skirt US controls, including several in the Middle East. Wealth funds from that region have also drawn scrutiny from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States over their ties to Beijing.

But the region is also a favorite among American companies and executives, including Microsoft and OpenAI’s Sam Altman, which are bolstering their Middle Eastern presence as sovereign wealth funds pour billions into cutting-edge technology.

Translation

（彭博）— 微軟公司剛宣布與阿布達比的 G42 合作，此前美國政府與G42這家中東公司進行了幕後談判，後者同意從中國撤資並轉向美國技術。

知情人士透露，專注於人工智能的控股公司 G42 去年與美國商務部工業與安全局進行了會談並達成了諒解。 他們表示，根據這項安排，G42 同意削減在中國的業務，否則將面臨華盛頓可能採取的懲罰性措施。

此次會談是拜登政府遏制中國技術實力並在世界各地爭取支持的更廣泛努力的一部分。 G42 得到阿布達比統治家族頗具影響力的成員 Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan 的支持，並希望成為中東的人工智能超級大國。

G42 執行長 Peng Xiao 今年 2 月向彭博社表示，該公司將從中國撤資，但該決定背後的細節並未公開。 知情人士透露，以國際結算銀行 (BIS = Bank for International Settlements) 為首的美國官員在國家安全委員會的支持下於去年夏天與阿聯酋接洽，並告訴高階主管們，他們必須在美國或中國之間做出選擇。

BIS 談判涉及 Xiao、Sheikh Tahnoon、阿聯酋大使 Yousef Al Otaiba 以及 Paul Hastings律師行資深律師 Marty Edelman、亦是G42 總法律顧問。

國際算銀行的代表拒絕發表評論。 G42 發言人在聲明中表示，撤資決定源於「與世界上最先進的人工智能技術公司合作 - 這些公司位於美國，有時甚至是歐洲的公司」的願望。

發言人表示: 「地緣政治因素影響著每一項國際業務，包括我們的業務」。 與微軟及其夥伴 OpenAI 合作的機會「對我們來說是真正的經濟和技術變革機會。 顯然，這些機會需要擺脫與中國的關係、設備和服務，我們正在以一個可被驗證的方式去進行這一轉變」。

一位知情人士表示，作為中國撤資的交換條件，G42 得到保證，它將繼續獲得支援人工智能應用的美國技術。 其中包括來自 Nvidia 公司的晶片。但據一位知情人士透露，該協議讓 G42 付出了相當大的代價，因為它必須從其係統中刪除一些中國技術。

這項撤資計劃也為微軟向 G42 投資 15 億美元奠定了基礎 - 該協議於週二宣布。 作為該協議的一部分，微軟總裁 Brad Smith 將加入 G42 董事會，G42會將使用該軟件製造商的 Azure 雲端來開發其人工智能應用程式。 該協議建立在現有合作夥伴關係的基礎上，是在與阿聯酋和美國政府協商後達成的。

G42作為阿聯酋最大的人工智能公司近幾個月受到美國會的審查，一位重要議員呼籲進行製裁, 因它其與被列入黑名單的中國企業華為技術有限公司, 以及北京基因組研究所有關係。 該公司「斷然」否認它「與中國政府及其軍工聯合體有聯繫」。

在與拜登政府達成協議之前，美國國務院和其他地方發出警告，稱將 G42 列入出口黑名單將對美國-阿聯酋關係造成災難性後果。 該公司旨在將人工智能應用於從醫學到太空探索的各個領域，是 Sheikh Tahnoon 的寶貴資產。 G42發言人表示，美國官員在會談期間並未威脅實施制裁。

據一些知情人士透露，美國商務部長雷蒙多於 3 月訪問了阿聯酋，討論了 G42 去擺脫中國的進展以及其他話題。

這是華盛頓更加關注中東人工智能和半導體野心的最新例子，沙地阿拉伯和阿拉伯聯合酋長國都在爭奪成為主要科技中心。

美國商務部去年擴大了對半導體技術的出口管制。 現在，向一些國家出售先進晶片和工具需要獲得許可，官員擔心中國可能利用那些國家作為中間人來規避美國的控制，其中包括中東的幾個國家。 該地區的財富基金也因與北京的關係而受到美國外國投資委員會的審查。

但該地區也是美國公司和高管的最愛，其中包括微軟和 OpenAI 的 Sam Altman，隨著主權財富基金向尖端技術投入數十億美元，這些公司正在加強其在中東的影響力。

              So, Microsoft Corp. announces partnership with G42 which has agreed to divest from China and pivot to American technology. It is another example of Washington’s increasing focus on AI and semiconductor ambitions in the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are both vying to become major tech hubs. Middle East in recent years has been a battle ground between China and the US in fighting for regional influence.

Note:

1. The Bank for International Settlement (BIS) is an international financial institution which is owned by member central banks. Its primary goal is to foster international monetary and financial cooperation while serving as a bank for central banks. (Wikipedia)

2. Paul Hastings LLP is a global law firm that represents a client base in finance, M&A, private equity, and litigation. The firm specializes in white collar and government disputes, energy, infrastructure, and intellectual property. (Wikipedia)