The race to build advanced artificial intelligence is making a Chinese move on Taiwan more tempting, according to Mike Gallagher, the head of defense at Palantir. He said Xi Jinping may decide that now is the moment to act, before China loses ground in AI for good.

What did Mike Gallagher say about Taiwan and AI?

Gallagher made the case at a defense policy event in Indiana on Wednesday, according to Bloomberg, which first reported his remarks. “The logic of Xi Jinping sacrificing enormously to take Taiwan is getting more compelling,” he said.

He framed the stakes in stark terms. “If we run away with AI, now is his moment to stop us from doing that, because he may not be able to catch up later on,” Gallagher added.

Why does Taiwan matter to the AI industry?

The island matters to the AI industry for a specific reason. Taiwan is home to TSMC, the world’s top maker of advanced AI chips, and Nvidia has called the island the epicenter of AI. Gallagher argued that control of the chipmaker would be a powerful lever. “If China takes Taiwan, they will control TSMC or disable TSMC,” he said. From there, Beijing could “hold the rest of the world economically hostage,” he added.

Gallagher is no stranger to the subject. A former Republican congressman, he led a House committee focused on China before joining Palantir in 2024. Last month, he wrote in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece that Taiwan is a “single point of failure” for AI, and he urged the United States to arm the island heavily.

China claims Taiwan as its territory and has not ruled out the use of force. Xi urged Washington to oppose Taiwanese independence during a White House summit with President Donald Trump in September. In May, Trump placed a $14 billion arms package for Taiwan on hold, describing it as a negotiating chip.

How serious is the near-term risk of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan?

US intelligence has taken a more measured view of the near-term danger. A March assessment concluded that an invasion “would be extremely challenging and carry a high risk of failure.” Even so, China has stepped up coast guard patrols off Taiwan’s east coast.

Palantir is a major Pentagon supplier. Its Maven AI system helps US forces with surveillance and targeting, and NATO also uses the platform.

Gallagher also pointed to talk in Silicon Valley about AI systems that can improve themselves. If that capability is real, he said, it would be a game changer on par with nuclear weapons in the 1940s.

Este artículo fue escrito con la asistencia de IA.
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