Algorithmic borders: AI, trade controls, and the rise of extraterritorial enforcement in technology law

This paper investigates the intensifying intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) regulation, global trade governance, and national security jurisprudence. As sovereign states seek to preserve strategic autonomy in an era of algorithmic ascendancy, AI systems have become entangled in complex legal architectures encompassing export controls, cross-border data governance, and foreign investment restrictions. Through doctrinal legal analysis and comparative regulatory mapping, this paper examines seminal frameworks including the U.S. Export Control Reform Act (ECRA), China's Export Control Law, and the EU’s Digital Markets Act. Using the case of AeroLogic Systems—a fictional dual-use AI enterprise—the analysis reveals how regulatory extraterritoriality and jurisdictional divergence disrupt innovation ecosystems, exacerbate compliance burdens, and challenge foundational principles of legal interoperability and intellectual property protection.