Core Viewpoint - SPEC successfully advocated for changes in U.S. law to allow companies on the BIS entity list to participate in standard-setting, promoting global collaboration in developing future computing efficiency standards [1][2]. Group 1: Changes in U.S. Policy - The U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) modified rules in 2020 to allow U.S. companies to join standard organizations, ensuring that U.S. proposals consider international standards [2]. - SPEC's efforts led to the revision of U.S. regulations by BIS at the end of 2022, allowing organizations on the BIS entity list to participate in SPEC ISG activities without restrictions [2][3]. Group 2: Importance of Member Inclusion - The return of excluded members is crucial for SPEC to continue promoting effective global standardization benchmarks, which are essential for government energy efficiency regulations [3]. - The Energy Star certification for computer servers results in an average energy saving of approximately 38% compared to standard servers, potentially saving end-users over $4 billion annually if all servers sold in the U.S. were certified [3]. Group 3: Development of Next-Generation Tools - The next-generation efficiency rating tools are being developed by the SPEC ISG Server Committee, which includes representatives from major companies like AMD, Dell, IBM, and Microsoft [3]. - The SERT 3 suite features a modular architecture that simplifies the integration of benchmarking tools, reducing the time and effort required for future development [3]. Group 4: Organizational Overview - SPEC is a non-profit organization dedicated to establishing and maintaining standardized benchmarks for evaluating the performance of the latest generation of computing systems, with over 120 global members [4].