The Trump administration is considering a new round of sweeping tariffs on semiconductors, a move that could extend beyond chips to products including laptops, gaming consoles and data-centre servers, POLITICO reported, citing eight people familiar with the discussions.
The proposed tariffs are being considered despite warnings from technology companies that higher costs and tighter access to advanced chips could undermine US ambitions to dominate the global artificial intelligence race.
Tariffs could hit laptops, gaming consoles and servers
According to POLITICO, one proposal under consideration would significantly expand the number of technology products subject to tariffs. Rather than targeting only semiconductors, the duties could also cover products that contain the chips, including laptops, gaming consoles and servers used in data centres.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick supports a structure that would link tariff relief for foreign companies to investments in US semiconductor manufacturing, four people familiar with the discussions told the news outlet.
The administration is also considering phasing in the tariffs, although the proposal remains fluid and could undergo significant changes in the coming weeks or months.
Tech industry warns of AI impact
The potential tariffs have alarmed the US technology industry, which is already facing shortages of high-end semiconductors as demand surges because of the rapid construction of AI data centres.
Technology companies broadly support President Donald Trump’s push to expand semiconductor manufacturing in the US. However, industry representatives argue that advanced chip factories require billions of dollars and can take years to build.
Until domestic capacity expands, US companies will remain heavily dependent on imported chips from Asian suppliers, including Malaysia, South Korea and Taiwan. Taiwan alone produces more than 90% of the world’s most advanced semiconductors, according to the report.
Tariffs could clash with Trump’s AI ambitions
The debate exposes a potential conflict between two major Trump administration priorities: bringing semiconductor manufacturing back to the US and winning the global AI race.
POLITICO reported that technology companies fear tariffs could raise the cost of the imported chips needed to power the AI boom and make it harder for US companies to obtain sufficient supplies.
The industry has warned that the measures could ultimately force some companies to delay or cancel planned data-centre projects.
White House defends tariff strategy
The White House defended the administration’s semiconductor policy.
“Reshoring semiconductor manufacturing is a top priority for President Trump,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said, according to the news outlet.
Desai said Trump administration policies had already secured hundreds of billions of dollars in investments in the semiconductor sector. The administration, he added, remains focused on attracting more investment, providing economic relief and protecting US national security.
Tech companies launch lobbying push
Technology companies and industry lobbyists have stepped up efforts to persuade the administration to scale back the proposed tariffs, POLITICO reported.
The companies want the new duties to more closely resemble tariffs announced earlier this year, which included broad exemptions for data centres and other domestic uses.
Tech representatives and lobbyists have increasingly met with Lutnick and other senior Commerce Department officials, including Undersecretary Jeffrey Kessler, who heads the Bureau of Industry and Security, according to people cited by the media outlet.
AI spending adds to industry concerns
Lobbyists argue that tariffs could slow the expansion of US data centres by making it more difficult for technology companies to secure the huge volumes of advanced semiconductors required for AI.
The concerns come as major US technology companies are embarking on a record AI spending spree, committing hundreds of billions of dollars to large data-centre projects and advanced chips.
One technology official from a major industry group said that the proposal could seriously undermine US efforts to establish AI leadership, describing it as “kneecapping yourself at the starting line.”
