The article details the involvement of White House officials in policy discussions regarding the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips, while also noting their private business engagements. Mr. Witkoff, serving as a Middle East envoy, advocated within the White House for the UAE to access advanced AI chips. Concurrently, his family’s firm, World Liberty, was involved in a $2 billion digital coin transaction with an Emirati entity, a deal projected to benefit the Trump and Witkoff families. Federal ethics rules typically prohibit U.S. officials from participating in matters that could provide financial benefit to their families. The White House stated that Mr. Witkoff “did not participate” in the chip negotiations but acknowledged his discussions of the deal in White House meetings and efforts to finalize it. A White House spokeswoman noted that Mr. Witkoff was “working with ethics officials and counsel to ensure he is in full compliance” regarding potential conflicts of interest. Similarly, another Trump adviser, Mr. Sacks, participated in the chip negotiations while maintaining his role as a Silicon Valley investor. Mr. Sacks received ethics waivers from the White House, which recognized his potential conflict of interest but permitted his involvement in the discussions.
Source: www.nytimes.com