Remarks by Assistant Secretary Arun Venkataraman at the Coalition of Services Industries (CSI) Global Services Summit - JUNE 25
Washington, DC
June 25, 2024
As Prepared
Thank you, Jake, for that very kind introduction. It is always a pleasure to connect with CSI. I am honored to be part of this year’s Summit.
Digital services and, in particular, maintaining U.S. leadership in digital services, is critical for U.S. economic and national security. This audience obviously knows that better than anyone, but it is worth reminding ourselves why that is the case.
First, digital services are important because they are vital for U.S. competitiveness. They are increasingly foundational tools for productivity and innovation in everything from manufacturing to healthcare to finance, allowing our companies to compete and win globally and create opportunities for American workers and families. Digital services are not a “tech sector” issue – they are central to the success of the entire economy.
Second, digital services, and the policies that facilitate them, are critical to level the playing field for those businesses that have the least resources to compete with entrenched players, foreign or domestic. I am talking about our micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Let there be no mistake – promoting smart digital policies that avoid creating unnecessary barriers to business and trade is not a “Big Tech” issue. As I see day in and day out in the work of the Commerce Department, many of our smallest and most innovative companies depend on us to promote access to foreign markets and to create the right policy environments conducive to their long-term success, including the right policies on open data flows.
Take for example the small Montana-based company Bridger Photonics, which provides a methane emissions detection data service to help the oil and gas industry mitigate their methane emissions. Working with our team in the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service, Bridger Photonics began exporting to Canada in 2019 and has recently expanded to export its data products to Colombia and Australia. The company could not provide its services abroad to help our international partners meet their climate goals without policies enabling cross-border data flows.
Third, digital services are important because they are a significant source of comparative advantage for the United States. This is a testament to our pro-innovation environment and the ingenuity and entrepreneurship of our people. But, it also explains why, in a time of growing intense competition in international trade, we have to be vigilant not to cede ground – we must not give our competitors room to catch up by hiding behind unjustified barriers or turn a blind eye to policies, even amongst our friends, that create obstacles to the digital collaboration between our companies that will be vital for our shared success.
Fourth, digital services are important because maintaining American leadership globally in this space is not simply a question of commercial advantage, but fundamental to our economic and national security. Many of the tools and innovations created through advancements in digital services by your companies provide critical advantages for us in the national security and defense arena. And, support for smart digital policies allows us to strengthen and advance core American values like privacy, equity, and fair competition.
Given how important digital services are for the United States, it should come as no surprise that helping our digital businesses expand overseas, and supporting the right policy frameworks conducive for digital trade, is a priority for the Department of Commerce and the International Trade Administration.
To strengthen U.S. technological leadership and expand opportunities for American small businesses, the International Trade Administration has prioritized highlighting opportunities for concrete commercial deals through our trade missions. This past March, Secretary Raimondo led a Presidential Trade and Investment Mission (PTIM) to the Philippines, where she was joined by digital technology companies, both large and small—like UltraPass ID, a decentralized trust platform that facilitates the movement of high value information across government agencies, programs, and jurisdictions. During the mission itself, UltraPass announced agreements with the Philippine Department of Budget and Management and NOW Corporation, leveraging the historic strategic partnership between the United States and the Philippines and highlighting the growing demand for robust digital identity infrastructure that prioritizes security, interoperability, and user privacy.
As we support American companies doing business overseas, we are also doubling down on leveraging our unique network of partnerships and cooperation. For example, in April, the United States and Costa Rica released a joint statement announcing our strategic commitment to foster open, interoperable, reliable, and secure digital infrastructure in Costa Rica.
Commerce has led interagency work with Costa Rica for several years now to promote the use of secure suppliers in the country’s 5G networks. Leveraging our success in Costa Rica, we recently convened a regional 5G network workshop attended by countries from across Latin America to share best practices in secure telecommunications and supply chains. We have supported numerous bilateral digital policy discussions and technical workshops on issues like data privacy, cybersecurity, spectrum allocation, and 5G security across the region.
In the wake of these efforts, 10 countries in the region have now allocated use of the 6GHz spectrum to open-use technologies in line with the U.S.; Brazil selected a U.S. vendor to design a secure 5G network for government use; Uruguay signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the United States to collaborate on select critical and emerging technologies; and El Salvador signed a joint statement on shared digital policy priorities emphasizing a shared commitment to deepening cooperation in this area.
The International Trade Administration has also worked with partners to support the development of strong, pro-innovation data governance, cybersecurity and AI policy frameworks.
In April, we took a critical step forward under the President’s Digital Transformation with Africa initiative, which Commerce co-chairs with the NSC. During Secretary Raimondo’s visit to Kenya, we concluded a Joint Statement that, among other things, lays a foundation for cooperation to “promote[e] robust data protections and enforcement while fostering interoperable mechanisms to facilitate trusted and secure cross-border data flows, including those essential to the development of emerging technologies like AI.”
We are also actively engaging in the Gulf to counter restrictive cross-border data transfer policies and promote international efforts to facilitate cross-border data flows like Japan’s Digital Free Flows with Trust (DFFT) initiative and the Global Cross-Border Privacy Rules Forum. Through our collaboration with the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, we are supporting the development of stronger data protection regimes that both promote privacy and the legitimate transfer of personal data that helps ensure access to innovative products that meet the needs of the Gulf population.
Working together with our European partners, our commercial diplomacy and advocacy efforts have helped shape EU’s digital measures to foster innovation and a healthy digital economy on both sides of the Atlantic. While significant challenges and issues on the digital agenda remain, we are making inroads on critical discussions happening at the EU and Member-State level, while recognizing that these outcomes have an impact on third-country regulatory approaches. For example, through our participation in the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council, we have had frank and sustained engagement with EU and Member State counterparts on the EU Cybersecurity Certification Scheme for Cloud Services (EUCS). We welcome recent steps in the direction of removing sovereignty requirements and continue to support a holistic, risk-based approach to EU cybersecurity, including via a certification scheme that enhances all member states’ cybersecurity.
Finally, as the world leader in AI, we recognize the importance of fostering innovation in this transformative technology while advancing international standards for safe, secure, and trustworthy AI development and use. Toward that goal, we are working closely with key international allies and partners. This includes not only Kenya as I mentioned earlier, but also the UK and Canada, where we have partnered in support of creating a network of AI Safety Institutes among like-minded partners.
As evidenced by these select examples, we are working everyday to help services and digital trade power sectors across the economy. From enabling clean energy solutions to fostering innovation in critical and emerging technologies, digital services are a principal pillar of U.S. competitiveness, a critical asset to our economic and national security, and a vital tool to improve prosperity for all Americans.
That is why, at Commerce, we will continue to work with all stakeholders, including industry and lawmakers, to maintain our competitive edge and support growing opportunities for our companies and workers in digital markets overseas. We look forward to continuing to fight the good fight, together.
Thank you.