New turn in US outbound investment rule as Treasury sends a draft

In December 2025, Congress made a law that sets US limits on investment in some technology in other countries. The new rule puts that law into use.

On Thursday, the US Treasury Department wrote a draft rule. It limits US investments in AI, supercomputing, biotechnology and hypersonic systems in China, Russia, North Korea and other countries of concern. The rule applies only to investments above $50,000 and does not include many financial investments, such as stock purchases. Treasury will hear comments from the public before it makes a last rule.

How it works

The rule puts the 2025 law on outbound investment into effect. Treasury uses superintelligence for AI. Hypersonic systems travel at five times the speed of sound.

The numbers

The rule applies to investments above $50,000. In July, Treasury gave a US company a penalty of $200,000. The company did not tell Treasury about a $92,500 investment by a subsidiary in a Chinese AI and robotics company. Lawyer Jason Chipman tells that companies must do more compliance checks.

What is not known

This is a draft only. Ryan Majerus, who was a US trade official, tells that this is the first step in a long sequence of steps. The sequence will possibly add more enforcement. The Foreign Ministry of China tells that the US applies measures against some countries. China will do necessary measures. It gave no more information.

Insight: The US limits money out as China limits technology out

Treasury wrote limits on US money that goes into AI in other countries. A Chinese draft of 16 October has export controls on 23 AI technologies. Each side at this time controls the things that go out of its border: the US controls money and China controls model technology. A deal across the border can have checks in each country. Monitor the last text of each rule.