Europe has Two Weapons to Burst AI Bubble and Punish Trump

The unthinkable has happened: the United States is now Europe’s adversary.

Dutch company ASML commands a global monopoly on advanced microchip-etching machines that use light to carve patterns onto silicon. (Photo: ASML Facebook) 

The stark and profound betrayal contained in the Trump administration’s national security strategy should end any remaining denial and dithering in Europe’s capitals.

Cultivating “resistance to Europe’s current trajectory in European nations” is now Washington’s stated policy, Johnny Ryan reported for The Guardian.

But within this calamity lies a gift of clarity. Europe will fight, or it will perish. The good news is that Europe holds strong cards.

The United States’ bet on artificial intelligence has become so gigantic that every MAGA voter’s pension is bound to the bubble’s precarious survival.

AI investment now rivals consumer spending as the primary driver of American economic growth. It accounted for virtually all (92%) of US GDP growth in the first half of this year. Without it, GDP grew by just 0.1%.

Despite Donald Trump’s posturing, he stands on shaky economic ground. His political coalition is fragile as well.

In July, and again this month, Trump was unable to force Senate Republicans to pass his proposed AI moratorium, which would have prevented US states from drafting their own AI laws.

The Steve Bannon wing of MAGA fears that AI will displace workers en masse and is appalled by what children are exposed to on digital platforms.

MAGA voters, in particular, mistrust big tech’s political power.

Technology is a dangerous topic for Trump. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, holds two cards that could puncture the AI bubble. If she plays them, Trump’s presidency would be thrown into crisis.

First, Dutch company ASML commands a global monopoly on advanced microchip-etching machines that use light to carve patterns onto silicon.

These machines are essential for Nvidia, the AI chip giant that is now the world’s most valuable company. Withholding them would be difficult for Europe and extremely painful for the Dutch economy—but far more devastating for Trump.

Second, and far easier for Europe, is the enforcement of the EU’s long-neglected data protection rules against US technology giants.

Confidential corporate documents made public in US litigation show how vulnerable companies such as Google are to basic data enforcement. Meanwhile, Meta has been unable to explain to a US court what its internal systems do with user data, who can access it, or for what purpose.