The U.S. on Tuesday added dozens of Chinese tech companies to its export blacklist in its first such effort under the Donald Trump administration, as it doubles down on curtailing Beijing’s artificial intelligence and advanced computing capabilities.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security added 80 organizations to an “entity list,” with more than 50 from China, barring American companies from supplying to those on the list without government permits.

The companies were blacklisted for allegedly acting contrary to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, the agency said, as part of its efforts to further restrict Beijing’s access to exascale computing tech, which can process vast amounts of data at very high speeds, as well as quantum technologies.

Dozens of Chinese entities were targeted for their alleged involvement in developing advanced AI, supercomputers and high-performance AI chips for military purposes, the Commerce Department said, adding that two firms were supplying to sanctioned entities such as Huawei and its affiliated chipmaker HiSilicon.

It blacklisted 27 Chinese entities for acquiring U.S.-origin items to support China’s military modernization and seven firms for helping advance China’s quantum technology capabilities.

Among the organizations in the “entity list” were also six subsidiaries of Chinese cloud-computing firm Inspur Group, which had been blacklisted by the Joe Biden administration in 2023.

The latest additions “cast an ever-widening net aimed at third countries, transit points and intermediaries,” said Alex Capri, a senior lecturer at National University of Singapore and author of “Techno-Nationalism: How it’s reshaping trade, geopolitics and society.”

Chinese firms have managed to gain access to U.S. strategic dual-use technologies via certain third parties, he said, referring to loopholes that have allowed Chinese companies access to U.S. technologies despite restrictions.

“U.S. officials will continue to step up tracking and tracing operations aimed at the smuggling of advanced semiconductors made by Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices,” he said.

The expanded export restrictions come at a time when tensions between Washington and Beijing have been rising with the Trump administration ratcheting up tariffs against China.

The rapid rise of Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has boosted the adoption of open-source low-cost AI models in China, putting pressure on leading U.S. competitors with higher-cost, proprietary models.

The Biden administration imposed sweeping export controls against China, encompassing everything from semiconductors to supercomputers under the so-called “small yard, high fence” policy. The approach aims to place restrictions on a small number of technologies with significant military potential while maintaining normal economic exchange in other areas.

Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Jeffrey I. Kessler said the agency was “sending a clear, resounding message” that the Trump administration will prevent U.S. technologies from “being misused for high performance computing, hypersonic missiles, military aircraft training, and UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicle) that threaten our national security.”

“The entity list is one of many powerful tools at our disposal to identify and cut off foreign adversaries seeking to exploit American technology for malign purposes,” he added.

Inspur Group and Huawei did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for comment.

Amazon, in an effort to infuse generative artificial intelligence across a wider swath of its e-commerce universe, recently began testing a shopping assistant and a health-focused chatbot with a subset of users.

AI has become a major area of investment across Amazon, including in its retail, cloud computing, devices and health-care businesses. Within the retail business, Amazon has already launched a shopping chatbot, an AI assistant for sellers and AI shopping guides.

The new services Amazon is testing appeared on its app or website in recent weeks. The shopping tool, called Interests AI, prompts users to describe an interest “using your own words,” and then it generates a curated selection of products. The feature lets consumers browse for products using more conversational language and is separate from the main search bar on Amazon’s website.

Within its core app, Amazon has a landing page for the feature.

“Describe your interest, like ‘coffee brewing gadgets’ or ‘latest pickleball accessories’ — and we’ll find relevant products for you,” the page says. Other suggested searches include “children books about persistence and dealing with failure,” and “brain teasers that are not too hard, made out of wood or metal.”

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said last month that employees have built or are in the process of building roughly 1,000 generative AI applications across the company. Its cloud unit offers a chatbot for businesses, called Q. In commerce, the company has rolled out services for consumers as well as its millions of third-party sellers.

Amazon is also exploring ways that AI can address medical needs. The company is testing a chatbot on its website and mobile app called “Health AI,” which can answer health and wellness questions, “provide common care options for health care needs,” and suggest products.

While Rufus, Amazon’s shopping chatbot, can suggest products like ice packs and ibuprofen, Health AI goes further, providing users with medical guidance and care tips, such as how to deal with cold symptoms or the flu. The site says the service can’t provide personalized medical advice.

Some responses feature a “clinically verified” badge, which denotes information that’s been “reviewed by US-based licensed clinicians,” Amazon says.

Health AI also steers users to Amazon’s online pharmacy, along with clinical services offered by One Medical, the primary care provider it acquired for roughly $3.9 billion in 2022.

More consumers are embracing generative AI as a shopping tool, and with features like Health AI and Interests AI, Amazon wants shoppers to use its own services over rivals like OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

With enough use, Amazon could gain valuable insights on the ways that people are interacting with AI assistants as the company prepares to overhaul Alexa, the digital assistant it launched more than a decade ago.

Amazon announced Alexa+, a new version of the technology embedded with generative AI, late last month. The company says that Alexa+, which has yet to roll out, is capable of handling more complex tasks and can serve as an “agent” by taking actions for users without their direct involvement.

Andrew Bell, an Amazon e-commerce manager for the National Fire Protection Association who also publishes research on Amazon’s patent filings and AI development, came across the new shopping and health features and recently posted about them on LinkedIn.

Bell said in an interview that Alexa+ could potentially draw upon models developed for Amazon applications like Health AI to answer queries.

“If there’s a health-related question, Alexa+ is going to maybe call on Health AI,” Bell said. “If there’s a product-related question, Alexa+ can call on Rufus.”

Amazon didn’t provide a comment for this story.

WATCH: Amazon’s SVP of Devices on Alexa+

23andMe has officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which means its assets — including its vast genetic database — will soon be up for sale.

The company continues to sell its at-home DNA testing kits, allowing consumers to get insight into their family histories and genetic profiles. DNA data is particularly sensitive because each person’s sequence is unique, meaning it can never be fully anonymized, according to the National Human Genome Research Institute.

If genetic data falls into the hands of bad actors, it could be used to facilitate identity theft, insurance fraud or other crimes. 23andMe has been plagued by privacy concerns in recent years after hackers accessed the information of nearly 7 million customers in October 2023.

As part of the bankruptcy process, the company said it will seek a partner that shares its commitment to customer data privacy, and that there will be no changes to how it stores, manages and protects data through the sale process.

“Our users’ privacy and data are important considerations in any transaction, and we remain committed to our users’ privacy and to being transparent with our customers about how their data is managed,” the company said in an FAQ page about the bankruptcy filing. “Any buyer of 23andMe will be required to comply with applicable law with respect to the treatment of customer data.”

Still, experts and officials are urging 23andMe customers to proceed with caution. California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Friday issued a consumer alert, encouraging residents to consider deleting their genetic data from 23andMe, which is based in his home state.

“Given 23andMe’s reported financial distress, I remind Californians to consider invoking their rights and directing 23andMe to delete their data and destroy any samples of genetic material held by the company,” Bonta said in the release.

Adrianus Warmenhoven, who serves on the security advisory board at NordVPN, described genetic data as the “blueprint of your entire biological profile.” He encouraged consumers to delete their information and be mindful of the companies they chose to share it with going forward.

“Monitor your digital footprint regularly, and you can also sign up for credit monitoring or identity theft protection services,” Warmenhoven said in a statement to CNBC. “Revoke permissions you no longer require, shut down any account you don’t use, and learn about how your data is used.” 

23andMe said customers can still delete their account and accompanying data. Here’s how:

Delete your genetic data from 23andMe

• Go to 23andMe.com and sign in to your account.
• Click on your profile in the upper righthand corner of the site, then click “Settings.”
• Scroll to the section at the very bottom of the page called “23andMe Data” and click the oval button that says “View.”
• Check the boxes of any data you would like to download and click “Request Download.” This step is optional and can take up to 30 days. You can continue with the following steps while you wait.
• Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the red button that says “Permanently Delete Data.”
• You will receive an email with the subject line “23andMe Delete Account Request.” Open it, and click the button that says “Permanently Delete All Records.” Your data will not be deleted unless you complete this step.

At this point, your personal information and your account will be permanently deleted from 23andMe, according to the deletion email from the company. Additionally, your data will not be used in any future research projects, and any personal samples the company was storing will be discarded.

WATCH: The rise and fall of 23andMe