Microsoft’s Brad Smith warned that President Trump’s crackdown on H-1B visas and green cards for skilled foreign workers could push talent to other countries, undermining the US tech sector’s competitiveness for decades to come.
Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith has warned that US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on H-1B visas and green cards for highly skilled foreign workers could push top technology talent to other countries and undermine the competitiveness of the American tech sector for decades. Speaking with POLITICO on the sidelines of the International AI Summit in Dublin, Ireland, Smith raised concerns over the administration’s move to restrict permanent residency applications for skilled foreign employees at Microsoft and seven other companies.
“I think we should all be worried about sending – intentionally or inadvertently or otherwise – signals that send the most talented next wave of AI [or] SI software engineers to other countries, rather than the United States,” Smith said. His remarks came less than a week after US Vice President JD Vance announced that Microsoft and seven other companies would be barred from seeking green cards for skilled foreign workers amid an investigation into alleged visa fraud.
Microsoft Rejects Visa Fraud Allegations
Rejecting the allegations, Smith described Vance’s claims against Microsoft as “completely off base” and said the vice president had not been accurately informed about the company’s immigration figures. Smith said the “vast majority” of Microsoft’s green card applications were for long-time employees rather than new hires, attributing the applications to lengthy backlogs in the permanent residency process.
Defends Compensation and Hiring Practices
He also rejected allegations that Microsoft paid foreign-born employees less than their American counterparts. “It doesn’t matter whether you came on a visa or you’re an American worker, everybody has the same compensation system,” Smith said, adding that employees performing comparable work were covered by the same compensation structure.
The Microsoft executive further said the company hired more than 9,000 US-born workers last year, arguing that its domestic recruitment record had been overlooked in the administration’s criticism.
Immigrants’ Contribution to US Tech Highlighted
Smith also highlighted the contribution of immigrants to American technological advancement, noting that five of the six recipients honoured by Trump with national technology and science medals had come to the United States as immigrants. “Think about what those five individuals have done for the well-being, even the wealth and standard of living, of Americans across the country. Let’s not put that at risk,” he said.
Context on Immigration and AI Policy
Microsoft had earlier defended its hiring practices in a statement issued on October 8, saying the vast majority of its US employees were Americans. The company said that of approximately 6,000 H-1B applications submitted in the previous fiscal year, 80 per cent were intended to extend or change the status of existing employees.
The controversy coincided with Trump’s presentation of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation to Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella, an Indian-origin executive who previously held an H-1B visa. While criticising the immigration crackdown, Smith praised the administration’s efforts to address AI safety, including export controls imposed on Anthropic’s AI models. (ANI)
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