Warren to demand reversal of Trump’s UAE chip sale after ‘Spy Sheikh’ revelations

Sen. Elizabeth WarrenD-Mass., will ask the Senate on Thursday to protest the sale of 500,000 advanced artificial intelligence chips and demand its reversal. United Arab Emirates.

Warren’s resolution, shared exclusively with CNBC, comes after a report in The Wall Street Journal Last week Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates, also known as the “Spy Sheikh”, secretly bought a 49% stake in the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial just days before the presidency. Donald TrumpInauguration of The stake saw an estimated $187 million flow to Trump family entities.

The Chip deal The bribery allegations came months after Tahnoon bought into World Liberty Financial. Previous US administrations have warned against selling chips to the UAE, citing concerns that they would end up in Chinese hands. Tahnoon’s own AI enterprise, G42, will receive the chips as part of the deal.

“What in the world was Donald Trump trying to ship our cutting-edge chips to the UAE – and China – when American startups, universities and small businesses need them here?” Warren is expected to ask the floor as she introduces her resolution. A draft of it has been seen by CNBC. “Well, now we know that the UAE greased the skids months ago when it secretly agreed to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into the Trump family’s crypto venture four days before President Trump’s inauguration.”

If agreed to on the Senate floor, the resolution would state that the Senate “condemns Donald Trump’s decision to allow the sale of advanced AI chips to the United Arab Emirates and calls for a reversal of this decision.”

500,000 of the chip deal will ship Nvidia’s Chips to the UAE every year with the most advanced silicon made by a US company. The US is fighting China for AI supremacy and fiercely protecting its technology.

Warren’s push for a vote on the resolution is likely to be blocked on the Senate floor, where any senator could object to the measure. But it can be applied Republicans – who have warned of AI chips reaching China – a tough spot.

“Trump is taking advantage of decisions that make it easier for countries like China to get their hands on some of our most sensitive and advanced technologies,” Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, is expected to say.

“Congress needs to grow a backbone. We cannot allow American national security to be sold to the highest bidder,” she is expected to add.

The Trump administration has denied any wrongdoing related to Tahnun’s purchases and chip deals.

Trump said this week when asked about the deal, “Well, I don’t know about it.”