Mexico’s AI rule gap complicates USMCA talks

Mexico is entering the USMCA review cycle with no general AI law, leaving it at a disadvantage as digital trade becomes tied to economic security and export controls. Canada appears on the US Commerce Department’s list of 18 countries cleared for preferential access to advanced AI chips and export licenses, while Mexico does not, a gap analysts connect to its unfinished technology regulatory framework.

USMCA remains in force, but the July 1 joint review did not produce the extension Mexico and Canada wanted. Washington declined to renew the pact in its current form, shifting the agreement into an annual review process while US-Mexico talks continue over automotive rules, metals, and Chinese capital and technology in regional supply chains.

The digital trade chapter, once seen as advanced, was not built for AI. Policy groups have floated an AI protocol, shared risk definitions, mutual recognition of safety standards, and a standing working group, while Mexican proposals call for a broader regional economic security agenda. Draft Mexican bills, including constitutional authority for a national AI statute and a proposed enforcement agency, remain stalled.

Business adoption is also uneven. An INEGI-based study found only 4.8% of Mexican manufacturing companies with more than 10 employees use AI, compared with 8% across sectors and an OECD average of 19.1%; a separate AWS-commissioned study put overall use at 48%, up from 38%. The governance delay could leave manufacturers, exporters, and founders adapting to foreign rules instead of shaping regional ones.