Tech Diplomacy Now: Krach Institute Rallies International Leaders at the 2024 Trusted Tech Summit to Advance Freedom Through Trusted Technology
The Global Tech Security Commission Report and the Global Trusted Tech (xGTT) Standard initiative were released at the Summit
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Tech Diplomacy Updates
Top News of the Week
Latest News
Technology Strategy and Policy
Artificial Intelligence
Telecommunications Networks and Infrastructure
Critical Minerals
Synthetic Biology
Quantum
Advanced Aerospace Technology
Semiconductors and Microelectronics
Energy and Climate
Opinion and Commentary
The Last Word
World’s-First Initiatives Unveiled at the Krach Institute Event in Washington, DC
On December 5, 2024, the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue, the world’s preeminent trusted technology accelerator, convened hundreds of international leaders from government, technology, business, academia, and civil society at the 2024 Trusted Tech Summit in Washington, D.C. The annual event featured dynamic panels, high-profile speakers, and the announcement of major initiatives to advance freedom through trusted technology.
The panels at the 2024 Trusted Tech Summit emphasized the importance of safeguarding freedom through trusted technology. The Global Tech Security Commission Report outlined actionable strategies to counter techno-authoritarian threats, while the Educating the Next Generation of Tech Diplomats panel stressed the need to equip leaders with skills to navigate the intersection of technology and geopolitics. Additionally, the unveiling of the Global Trusted Tech (xGTT) Standard initiative showcased a groundbreaking framework to define and label trusted technology, enabling seamless, secure and efficient collaboration across companies, countries and organizations.
“The 2024 Trusted Tech Summit has shown that trusted technology is not just a tool but the backbone of freedom and security in a digital age. The launch of the Global Tech Security Commission Report and the Global Trusted Tech Standard represents a significant step in safeguarding critical technologies,” said Keith Krach, Co-Founder and Chairman of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue. “I am deeply grateful to the speakers, attendees, and all the members of the Global Trusted Tech Network for their dedication to fostering trust, transparency, and security. By aligning democratic nations and fostering collaboration, we can ensure that technology continues to serve humanity’s highest ideals.”
Pictured clockwise left to right: Josh Rogin, Columnist, The Washington Post; David Spirk, Senior Counselor, Palantir; Amb. Kristjan Prikk, Estonian Ambassador to the US; Nazak Nikakhtar, Chair, National Security Practice, Wiley Rein; Marcus Jadotte, VP, Google Cloud; Ruth Porat, President and Chief Investment Officer, Alphabet and Google; Kersti Kaljulaid, Former President of Estonia; Keith Krach, Chairman, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue; Oby Ezekwesili, Founder and Chairperson, School of Politics, Policy, and Governance; Rick Echevarria, Former VP, Security Solutions, Intel; Audrey Tang, Cyber Ambassador-at-Large, Taiwan; Lai Ching-te, President of Taiwan.
See the full event recap here.
Krach Institute CEO Michelle Giuda: America’s Real Pacing Challenge in the 21st Century
During her remarks at the 2024 Trusted Tech Summit, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue CEO Michelle Giuda observed that rather than looking to China as America’s pacing challenge, we should look at our own status quo and see "whether or not we have the determination to surpass our own limits of what’s possible, so we can create a 21st century that’s safer, freer and more prosperous than the world has ever seen." Click above to watch Michelle Giuda's full remarks.
Top News of the Week – More US Export Controls on Advanced Chips, China Retaliates
On December 2, the Biden Administration announced a third round of export restrictions on advanced semiconductors and the tools that make them, prompting the PRC to announce an embargo of certain critical minerals to the United States.
Key Points:
U.S. restrictions on advanced semiconductors were more lenient than some observers had predicted.
The PRC almost immediately announced an embargo of certain critical minerals to the United States, while markets judged that it would be difficult for Beijing to harm the United States with those restrictions.
Shortly before the announcement of the export controls, the CEO of Intel Corporation was forced to retire by his board as they lost confidence with the American semiconductor company’s plans for a turn-around.
More on Background:
BIS Issues Sweeping Additional Restrictions on Semiconductors and Advanced Computing, Entity List Designations – Wilmer Hale, December 6, 2024
China bans exports to US of gallium, germanium, antimony in response to chip sanctions – AP, December 3, 2024
Latest US clampdown on China's chips hits semiconductor toolmakers – Reuters, December 2, 2024
US targets China's chip industry with new restrictions – Reuters, December 2, 2024
Intel CEO Gelsinger forced out after board lost confidence in turnaround plan – Reuters, December 2, 2024
ASML not changing guidance after new US crackdown on China chip exports – Reuters, December 2, 2024
Biden unveils scaled down chip curbs – Politico, December 2, 2024
Latest News
After toppling French government, far-right National Rally loses key by-election – Reuters, December 9, 2024
TikTok taking its case to SCOTUS – Politico, December 6, 2024
China Just Showed Washington How It Plans to Fight the Next Trade War – NYTs, December 4, 2024
The corruption scandal gripping China’s army – The Spectator, December 2, 2024
China, Russia militaries conduct joint air patrol over Sea of Japan – Reuters, November 29, 2024
Europe is under attack from Russia. Why isn’t it fighting back? – Politico, November 25, 2024
Technology Strategy and Policy
US clears export of advanced AI chips to UAE under Microsoft deal, Axios says – Reuters, December 8, 2024
China Slaps Sanctions on 13 U.S. Defense Firms – NYTs, December 5, 2024
OpenAI’s new defense contract completes its military pivot – MIT Technology Review, December 4, 2024
Biden Targets China’s Chip Industry with Wider Trade Bans – NYTs, December 2, 2024
UK facing ‘widening gap’ in ability to fight cyber threats, warns top agency – FT, December 2, 2024
Margrethe Vestager, the World’s Top Tech Cop, Is Making Her Exit – NYTs, November 26, 2024
Artificial Intelligence
Google DeepMind’s new AI model is the best yet at weather forecasting – MIT Technology Review, December 4, 2024
Defense Against the AI Dark Arts: Threat Assessment and Coalition Defense – Hoover Institution, December 4, 2024
Government Venture Capital and AI Development in China – NBER, December 3, 2024
Telecommunications Networks and Infrastructure
US House to vote to provide $3 billion to remove Chinese telecoms equipment – Reuters, December 7, 2024
VIDEO - Chinese hackers have infiltrated at least 8 U.S. telecom companies, White House says – PBS News Hour, December 5, 2024
TikTok Removes Covert Network Linked to Romanian Candidate – Bloomberg, December 3, 2024
Chinese lidar sensors pose hacking risk to US defense equipment, report says – Reuters, December 2, 2024
Laser Focus: Countering China’s LiDAR Threat to U.S. Critical Infrastructure and Military Systems – FDD, December 2, 2024
Critical Minerals
China mineral export curbs heighten Japan supply chain fears – Nikkei Asia, December 5, 2024
Tungsten mine opens in Korea as U.S. seeks non-China critical minerals – CNBC, November 29, 2024
Synthetic Biology
Big Pharma’s Bet on China Biotech Is a Rare Trade Bright Spot – Bloomberg, December 2, 2024
Mitigating Risks from Gene Editing and Synthetic Biology: Global Governance Priorities – Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, October 16, 2024
Quantum
India’s Himalayan Site Ideal for Transmitting Quantum Signals to Space, Study Finds – Quantum Insider, December 9, 2024
AI found a new way to create quantum entanglement – New Scientist, December 6, 2024
Quantum Radar over Long Distances – APS, December 6, 2024
MIT Researchers Unveil Photonic Processor for Faster, Energy-Efficient AI – Quantum Insider, December 3, 2024
Advanced Aerospace Technology
Europe's Maiaspace steps up effort to counter SpaceX with reusable rocket – Reuters, December 9, 2024
Chinese drone maker changes lawyers in Pentagon case, dropping Loretta Lynch – Reuters, December 2, 2024
Chinese Assessments of Starlink and U.S.-China Space Relations – CSIS, December 2, 2024
US agency approves T-Mobile, SpaceX license to extend coverage to dead zones – Reuters, November 26, 2024
Semiconductors and Microelectronics
Former Russian ASML employee charged with IP theft and sanctions violations – Reuters, December 9, 2024
BIS Publishes Assessment on the Use of Mature-Node Chips – Bureau of Industry and Security, December 6, 2024
He Was Going to Save Intel. He Destroyed $150 Billion of Value Instead. – WSJ, December 5, 2024
Japan Earmarks Extra $9.9 Billion for Chips and AI This Year – Bloomberg, November 29, 2024
Intel Gets Up to $7.9 Billion Award for U.S. Chip-Plant Construction – WSJ, November 26, 2024
Energy and Climate
BYD on track to top 2024 sales goal and outsell Ford, Honda – Reuters, December 9, 2024
German ministry under pressure to end tainted Chinese biofuel imports – Nikkei Asia, December 5, 2024
Northvolt insolvency could cost taxpayers 620 million euros – Handelsblatt, December 2, 2024
France, Germany, Sweden urge EU battery sector push to avoid China reliance – Reuters, November 28, 2024
Opinion and Commentary
The Fiction of Western Unity on China De-Risking – James Crabtree, Foreign Policy, December 5, 2024
I was censored from talking about Chinese influence in Latin America – Juan Villasmil, The Spectator, December 5, 2024
The tainted legacy of the Merkel-Obama years – Gideon Rachman, FT, December 2, 2024
How America Lost its Global Connectivity Lead and Why the Future Depends on Getting it Back – Alexander Harstrick, War on the Rocks, August 28, 2024
The Last Word
“As Keith Krach, former Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment, has said: ‘Technology is the key to winning the 21st century.’ Especially in the age of AI, technology holds the potential to drive material economic upside, address social issues, advance science and, importantly, fortify national security.”
Ruth Porat, President and Chief Investment Officer of Alphabet and Google, after accepting the Trusted Tech Leadership Award on behalf of Google at the 2024 Trusted Tech Summit
About: Tech Diplomacy Now
The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue is the world’s preeminent trusted technology accelerator. As the leader of the new category of Tech Diplomacy, the Institute integrates technology expertise, Silicon Valley strategies, and foreign policy tools to build the Global Trusted Tech Network of governments, companies, organizations and individuals to accelerate the innovation and adoption of trusted technology and ensure technology advances freedom.