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Technology · North America

Brad Smith warns green-card restrictions could push tech talent abroad

Microsoft President Brad Smith warned the Trump administration that restricting skilled immigrants’ route to permanent residency could drive AI and technology talent to other countries. Smith also rejected Vice President JD Vance’s allegations that Microsoft used the H-1B program to hire foreign workers at lower salaries.

AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 5 outlets' reporting · Full text read from 1 of 5 outletsHow it's made

View timeline · 8 entries
5 outlets2 regionsLatest reporting 3 min read
Coverage: Center OnlyL 0 · C 4 · R 0 · 1 unrated

What happened

Key facts

  • Microsoft President Brad Smith warned that green-card restrictions could drive technology talent out of the United States (per Hindustan Times, americanbazaaronline.com).
  • Smith warned that green-card restrictions could push AI talent out of the United States (per Hindustan Times, biggo.com).
  • Smith said the green-card backlog was so long (per Hindustan Times).
  • Smith said the individuals involved, together with their companies, accounted for more than 25% of the total market value of the S&P 500 (per Hindustan Times).
  • The Economic Times headline said the US green-card crackdown could break the technology sector (per The Economic Times).
  • The American Bazaar headline said Brad Smith warned that Trump’s green-card restrictions could hurt technology (per americanbazaaronline.com, Hindustan Times).

The brief

Microsoft President Brad Smith warned that restrictions on skilled immigrants’ path to permanent residency could send AI and technology talent to other countries. Hindustan Times reported that Smith directed the warning at the Trump administration, as the government had moved to block Microsoft and seven other companies from seeking green cards for foreign workers.

The article did not state when that move occurred, describing it as happening days before the account of Smith’s remarks. Smith made the comments in an interview with Politico’s Decoded during the International AI Summit in Dublin, Ireland.

He said the United States should be concerned about signals that might lead highly skilled software engineers, including those working in AI, to choose other countries. He added that the green-card backlog was very long. Smith also rejected Vice President JD Vance’s allegations that Microsoft had misused the H-1B visa program to hire foreign workers at lower salaries.

The account gives Smith’s denial but does not provide further detail about Vance’s allegations or a response from Vance. It therefore records a dispute over the company’s use of the visa program without resolving it.

Smith linked the talent issue to the scale of the companies involved, saying the individuals he discussed, together with their companies, represented more than 25% of the S&P 500’s total market value. The article does not specify how many workers he was referring to or provide additional detail about how the figure was calculated.

The reported restriction concerns applications for permanent residency by foreign workers at Microsoft and seven other companies; Smith’s warning concerns the possibility that skilled talent could go abroad. The article does not say that the restriction had already caused workers to leave the United States.

Its account presents Smith’s concern as a potential consequence, alongside his criticism of the backlog. Other headlines also describe Smith’s warning as concerning the possible effect of green-card restrictions on technology or AI talent.

The Economic Times headline says the crackdown could “break” the technology sector, while The American Bazaar headline characterizes the restrictions as potentially harmful to technology. Those headlines do not add details about the government’s move, the H-1B allegations or Smith’s interview beyond their stated framing.

Why it matters

  • Foreign workers seeking permanent residency at Microsoft and seven other companies face a potential barrier through the reported move to block those companies from seeking green cards.
  • Smith’s stated concern is that skilled AI and technology workers could choose other countries instead of the United States.
  • The individuals Smith discussed, together with their companies, account for more than 25% of the S&P 500’s total market value, according to his statement.

What to watch next

  • Whether the government proceeds with blocking Microsoft and seven other companies from seeking green cards for foreign workers.
  • Whether Microsoft or JD Vance provides further details on Vance’s allegations about the company’s use of the H-1B program.

How it's being covered

Coverage analysisShow details
6 source articles · 5 unique outlets
Coverage mix: Center Only· 4 Center
Where the outlets are based: Asia 60% · US/Canada 20% · Other 20%
Coverage mix
Center Only
Left
Center
Right
0 outlets
4 outlets
0 outlets
The marker shows coverage balance: each unique outlet counts once. 1 unrated outlet is not included.
Geography
Where the outlets covering this story are based.
5 unique outletsDominant coverage: Asia
Coverage imbalance
  • Coverage is currently concentrated among Center-rated outlets (4 of 4 rated sources); comparatively few Left or Right-rated outlets have published on the event.
How we measure coverage

How outlets' accounts compare

Updat3 does not yet have enough full reports to compare how outlets framed this story.

Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.
  1. Congress enacted the Immigration and Nationality Act, which established employment as a basis for immigration.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  2. Congress enacted the Immigration Act of 1990, creating employment-based green-card categories and the H-1B classification.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  3. President Bill Clinton signed the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-First Century Act, which raised the H-1B cap temporarily and exempted some employers.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  4. President George W. Bush signed the H-1B Visa Reform Act, setting a 65,000 general cap and a 20,000 exemption for some U.S. graduate-degree holders.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  5. In 2013, Microsoft published a report calling for changes to U.S. immigration rules, including expansion of the H-1B program and reforms to employment-based green-card limits.
    Background · from our historical context
  6. President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 13788, directing agencies to review the H-1B visa system.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  7. President Trump issued a proclamation suspending entry for some temporary workers, including certain H-1B visa holders.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  8. A Department of Homeland Security rule changing H-1B program procedures took effect.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3

How we got here

The immediate policy backdrop included Donald Trump’s first-term immigration measures: on April 18, 2017, he signed Executive Order 13788, “Buy American and Hire American,” directing agencies to review the H-1B visa system.

On June 22, 2020, Trump issued a proclamation suspending entry for some temporary workers, including certain H-1B visa holders; President Joe Biden revoked that proclamation on February 24, 2021. Separately, a Department of Homeland Security rule finalized on December 18, 2024, changed H-1B program procedures and took effect on January 17, 2025.

Original sources

6 articles from 5 outlets

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