Export Controls to Be Bigger Factor for Universities Amid US-China Tech Competition, Report Says

U.S. export controls are set to become more of a factor at universities worldwide as U.S.-China technology competition accelerates, forcing academic institutions to adjust to an expanding basket of regulations and compliance standards, a Hinrich Foundation report said. Colleges, which already struggle with insufficient government export control guidance (see 2005120053), need to be prepared for increased controls on software and networks, placement of foreign universities on blacklists and bans on certain foreign funding, the report said.

The report, issued Aug. 5, said the academic world will be forced to adapt to a new regulatory landscape to continue its research and innovation. “New measures will fundamentally change how universities enter into collaborative research partnerships, hire faculty and admit foreign students,” the foundation said.

Universities will be particularly affected by expansion of export controls and placement of Chinese universities on the Commerce Department’s Entity List, the report said. The foundation pointed to the impacts of Commerce’s addition of China’s Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) to the Entity List in June (see 2006030032), which was “felt immediately.” HIT faculty and students can no longer access U.S. simulation and research software, including technology used “extensively” in research and development programs globally, the report said.

HIT’s blacklisting could expose other Chinese universities to export controls and the Entity List, and may dissuade organizations and universities worldwide from engaging with Chinese academic entities. “The possibility that these other institutions might be next on Washington’s target list could lead to preemptive decoupling by other existing academic partners in the US and around the world,” the report said.

But U.S. export controls won’t hurt just foreign academic institutions -- they also will hurt U.S. colleges that rely on international students for research and development, the report said. This could limit the talent pipeline to U.S. technology companies, even as the Trump administration pushes for more technology innovation to compete with China. “A large-scale closing-off of the US educational system to Chinese students and academics would be counterproductive to US interests,” the report said.

To remain “vibrant places of learning,” universities must put in place “risk-management measures” to address the U.S.-China technology race, the report said. This may include “conflict of interest audits” conducted by third parties, due diligence practices similar to the banking industry's “know your customer” standards and increased disclosure and transparency measures, the report said. Universities might even have to reject funding “outright” from “potentially hostile entities.”

To check for due diligence, the administration may increase enforcement standards and penalties for violating “research integrity,” which could apply to students, faculty and “entire academic institutions.” The foundation said U.S.-China competition, along with the controls and due diligence requirements it will bring, will inevitably lead to tension between U.S. government policies and colleges. “The challenge for public-private partnerships,” the report said, “will be about achieving a healthy middle ground.”