微软总裁布拉德·史密斯警告特朗普政府，限制技术移民获得永久居留权的途径可能削弱美国科技行业，并将顶尖人才吸引到其他国家。此警告是在政府刚刚采取行动阻止微软及另外七家公司为外籍工人申请绿卡之后几天发出的。在接受《政治》杂志《Decoded》栏目的独家采访时，史密斯驳斥了副总统JD·万斯关于微软滥用H-1B签证项目以较低薪资雇佣外籍工人的指控。
Microsoft President Brad Smith has warned the Trump administration that restricting skilled immigrants’ path to permanent residency could weaken the US technology sector and drive top talent to other countries, days after the government moved to block Microsoft and seven other companies from seeking green cards for foreign workers. In an exclusive interview with Politico’s Decoded, Smith rejected Vice President JD Vance’s allegations that Microsoft misused the H-1B visa program to hire foreign workers at lower salaries.
他指出，此次打压可能削弱美国吸引工程师和其他高技能专业人才的能力，尤其是在人工智能领域。“我们都应该担心 — — 有意或无意或其他方式 — — 向最有才华的下一波人工智能[或]SI软件工程师传递信号，让他们前往其他国家而非美国，”史密斯在爱尔兰都柏林举行的国际人工智能峰会期间对《政治》杂志如是说。
He argued that the crackdown could undermine America’s ability to attract engineers and other highly skilled professionals, particularly in artificial intelligence.“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 told Politico during the International AI Summit in Dublin, Ireland.
他的言论发表于万斯宣布政府将禁止微软及另外七家公司为其技术外籍工人申请绿卡不到一周之后。美国移民费用上调今日生效：谁将面临更高费用以及这对印度人意味着什么微软否认签证欺诈指控万斯指控微软滥用H-1B项目以规避以更高薪资雇佣美国工人。史密斯驳斥了这些指控，称其“完全站不住脚”。这位微软高管表示，有人未能向万斯提供关于该公司雇佣和移民数据的准确信息。
His remarks came less than a week after Vance announced that the administration would bar Microsoft and seven other companies from seeking green cards for their skilled foreign workers.US immigration fee hike takes effect today: Who faces higher charges and what it means for IndiansMicrosoft rejects visa fraud allegationsVance accused Microsoft of abusing the H-1B program to avoid hiring American workers at higher salaries. Smith rejected the allegations, describing them as “completely off base”.The Microsoft executive said someone had failed to provide Vance with accurate information about the company’s employment and immigration figures.
他辩称，微软绝大多数的绿卡申请涉及的是长期服务的员工，而非新雇员。
He argued that the vast majority of Microsoft’s green card applications involved long-serving employees rather than new hires.
史密斯表示，这些申请反映出美国永久居民身份体系中漫长的积压。“不幸的是，这只是因为绿卡积压太久了，”他说。
The applications reflected the lengthy backlog in the US permanent residency system, Smith said.“Unfortunately, it’s just because the green card backlog is so long,” he said.
史密斯还反驳了关于微软向外国出生员工支付的薪酬低于美国工人的说法。他说，无论员工的移民身份如何，公司都采用相同的薪酬体系。
美国签证规则改动：尽管支付了额外费用，H-1B员工和印度学生可能需要等待更长时间史密斯补充说，微软去年雇用了9000多名在美国出生的工人，他辩称这一数字在政府的批评中被忽视了。
Smith also disputed claims that Microsoft paid foreign-born employees less than American workers. He said the company applied the same compensation system regardless of an employee’s immigration status.US visa rule change: H-1B workers, Indian students may wait longer despite paying extra feesMicrosoft hired more than 9,000 US-born workers last year, Smith added, arguing that the figure had been overlooked in the administration’s criticism.“We will stand by our record,” he said, urging White House officials to reconsider what he described as a more accurate account of the company’s hiring practices.
“我们将坚守我们的记录，”他说，并敦促白宫官员重新考虑他所描述的关于该公司招聘做法的更准确的说明。史密斯警告美国科技行业面临风险史密斯指出移民对美国创新的贡献，并表示获得总统唐纳德·特朗普授予科技和科学奖章的六名美国人中，有五人是移民到美国的。
Smith warns of risks to US technology sectorSmith pointed to the contributions of immigrants to American innovation, stating that five of the six Americans honored by President Donald Trump with technology and science medals had immigrated to the United States.
史密斯说，这些人及其公司占标准普尔500指数总市值的25%以上。
“我们不要让这一点处于危险之中，”他补充说，并警告称对技术移民的限制可能会危及由移民企业家和科技领袖所创造的经济效益。
Together with their companies, those individuals accounted for more than 25% of the total market value of the S&P 500, Smith said.“Let’s not put that at risk,” he added, warning that restrictions on skilled immigration could jeopardize the economic benefits created by immigrant entrepreneurs and technology leaders.
这场争端凸显了政府收紧以就业为基础的移民的努力与科技行业对专业工人的需求之间的紧张关系。
The dispute highlights tensions between the administration’s efforts to tighten employment-based immigration and the technology industry’s demand for specialized workers.
在批评移民举措的同时，史密斯赞扬了政府的一些人工智能政策，包括对Anthropic的新人工智能模型实施的出口管制，这表明尽管微软在技术移民问题上与白宫存在分歧，但它支持某些技术举措。
While criticizing the immigration measures, Smith praised some of the administration’s AI policies, including export controls imposed on Anthropic’s new AI models, illustrating Microsoft’s support for certain technology initiatives despite its disagreement with the White House over skilled immigration.