Washington: Microsoft President Brad Smith has warned the Trump administration that restrictions on skilled immigration could weaken the US technology sector and push highly qualified engineers to other countries. His remarks come amid growing tensions between the administration and major technology companies over the H-1B visa programme and green cards for foreign workers.
In an interview with Politico’s Decoded during the International AI Summit in Dublin, Ireland, Smith said the United States risked losing talented professionals, particularly those working in artificial intelligence and software development, if it made permanent residency more difficult for skilled immigrants.
“We should all be worried about sending — intentionally or inadvertently or otherwise — signals that send the most talented next wave of AI or software engineers to other countries, rather than the United States,” Smith said.
The warning followed an announcement by Vice President JD Vance that Microsoft and seven other companies would be barred from seeking green cards for their skilled foreign workers. Vance had accused Microsoft of misusing the H-1B visa programme to hire foreign employees at lower salaries instead of recruiting American workers.
Smith strongly rejected the allegations, describing them as “completely off base”. He argued that the criticism failed to account for the company’s employment record and the lengthy backlog in the US green card system.
According to Smith, most of Microsoft’s green card applications concerned employees who had worked at the company for years, rather than newly recruited workers. He said the long waiting period for permanent residency was a major reason for the applications.
Smith also denied claims that foreign-born employees were paid less than American workers. He maintained that Microsoft followed the same compensation system regardless of employees’ immigration status.
The executive further said Microsoft had hired more than 9,000 US-born workers last year, arguing that this aspect of its recruitment record had been overlooked in the criticism.
Smith also highlighted the role of immigrants in American innovation. He said five of the six Americans honoured by President Donald Trump with technology and science medals had immigrated to the United States. According to Smith, those individuals and their companies represented more than 25% of the S&P 500’s total market value.
“Let’s not put that at risk,” he said, warning that tighter immigration restrictions could undermine the country’s ability to attract talent and sustain technological growth.
The dispute reflects a broader conflict between the administration’s efforts to tighten employment-based immigration and the technology industry’s demand for specialised workers. Although Smith criticised the visa restrictions, he praised some of the administration’s artificial intelligence policies, underscoring that the disagreement remains focused on skilled immigration rather than all aspects of technology policy.
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