The US has passed a law that tightens restrictions on the export of NVIDIA and AMD chips to China

NVIDIA and AMD, the leading makers of artificial intelligence chips, will have to give priority access to their processors to American companies instead of Chinese ones, Bloomberg reports.

The requirements were passed by the Senate in a new law that aims to boost U.S. competitiveness in advanced industries while also helping to limit chip exports to China and other foreign competitors.

"Today, the Senate acted to make sure American customers — including small businesses and startups — aren’t forced to wait in line behind China’s tech giants when purchasing the latest AI chips," said Elizabeth Warren, the bill's lead co-author, in an official statement.

In response, executives and associations of American technology companies criticized the new law, saying it could limit competition and stifle innovation in the United States.

The new restrictions on chip sales to China were passed as part of the annual defense policy bill. Before the law can take effect, representatives from both houses of Congress still need to agree on a final package, which theoretically could not include these provisions.

These actions follow the Trump administration's agreements with NVIDIA and AMD, which also required both chipmakers to pay the US government 15% of the revenue they generate from selling artificial intelligence chips to China.