The US Rush to Secure AI’s Raw Materials Enters Overdrive
Washington rallies key allies to rebuild the minerals, semiconductor, and energy systems underpinning the global AI race.
The United States is accelerating efforts to secure the minerals, materials, and high-end manufacturing capacity that power modern artificial intelligence, launching a new initiative that places supply chains at the center of geopolitical competition with China. This shift isn’t subtle. It’s strategic, it’s urgent, and it’s being orchestrated directly from the White House.
On December 12, US officials will meet with representatives from eight key allies — Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the UK, Israel, the UAE, and Australia — in a high-level summit designed to lock in new agreements across critical minerals, semiconductors, energy, transportation logistics, and AI infrastructure. The message is unmistakable. AI dominance won’t be decided solely by breakthroughs in code. It will be decided by who controls the minerals that power the chips that run the models.
A Two-Horse Race: The US and China
Jacob Helberg, the State Department’s undersecretary for economic affairs and a former Palantir adviser, describes the moment bluntly: “Right now in AI, it’s a two-horse race — it’s the US and China.” His goal is to ensure the US stays ahead by eliminating the “coercive dependencies” that have allowed Beijing to weaponize control over minerals and manufacturing.
The US has spent years trying to weaken China’s dominance in critical minerals. The Trump administration launched the Energy Resource Governance Initiative, targeting lithium and cobalt supply chains. The Biden administration expanded the approach through the Minerals Security Partnership, steering Western capital into strategic mining jurisdictions. Yet China still controls more than 90% of global rare earths and permanent magnet refining — a leverage point Beijing has already used through export controls and political pressure.

