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US hearing warns Chinese economic espionage now targets AI
🇨🇳 China /Economy & Trade

US hearing warns Chinese economic espionage now targets AI

From South China Morning Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • A U.S. congressional committee heard warnings that China's economic espionage, including the theft of artificial intelligence advances, poses a significant threat.
  • Witnesses testified that China's military is a primary beneficiary of these stolen technologies, fueling its rapid economic and military growth.
  • Some argued for a targeted approach to counter espionage, cautioning that broad measures could harm Asian Americans and undermine U.S. security.

The United States has been too slow to recognize and counter China's decades-long campaign of economic espionage, which has systematically undermined American economic strength by stealing ideas, technologies, and now, crucial artificial intelligence advances, a U.S. congressional committee was told Thursday.

China has orchestrated a highly strategic, highly accelerated and multifaceted effort to steal commercial and technological secrets from the United States and other Western nations.

— David SheddFormer acting director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, testifying before the House Select Committee on China.

The House Select Committee on China, focusing on economic espionage and China's influence operations at state and local levels, heard testimony amid heightened bilateral tensions over export controls and technological rivalry. This comes despite a recent summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump aimed at stabilizing relations.

"China has orchestrated a highly strategic, highly accelerated and multifaceted effort to steal commercial and technological secrets from the United States and other Western nations," stated David Shedd, former acting director of the Defense Intelligence Agency. He described the campaign as a blend of cyber espionage, human intelligence, academic collaboration, and commercial investments, which has been pivotal in propelling China's rapid economic and military rise.

We should use a scalpel, not a sledgehammer.

— John YangPresident and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice, speaking at the congressional hearing.

However, some witnesses and lawmakers urged caution against overly broad responses. They argued that while Beijing's aggressive acquisition of foreign secrets must be addressed, measures that target Chinese students, property owners, researchers, or private companies could inadvertently harm U.S. security. "We should use a scalpel, not a sledgehammer," advised John Yang, president and executive director of the civic group Asian Americans Advancing Justice, noting that Asian Americans increasingly feel unsafe due to their race or ethnicity.

Asian-Americans no longer feel safe because of their race or ethnicity.

— John YangPresident and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice, commenting on the impact of broad anti-espionage measures.
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Originally published by South China Morning Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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