Intelligence chiefs from the Five Eyes alliance, comprising the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, issued a rare joint statement accusing China of intellectual property theft and the utilization of artificial intelligence for hacking and espionage. This announcement follows meetings with private companies in Silicon Valley, the U.S. innovation hub.
The intelligence officials raised concerns that China was engaging in the theft of intellectual property across various sectors, from quantum technology and robotics to biotechnology and artificial intelligence. They stated that China employs a multitude of techniques, including cyber intrusions, human intelligence operations, corporate investments, and transactions, in its targeted approach against businesses.
US FBI Director Christopher Wray referred to this joint call as an “unprecedented” response to the “unprecedented threat” posed by China to global innovation. He emphasized the evolving and increasingly brazen nature of China’s activities.
China has long faced accusations from the United States regarding intellectual property theft, contributing to tensions in US-China relations. However, this is the first public joint condemnation of China’s actions by the Five Eyes members.
Mike Burgess, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation’s director-general, stated that while China’s pursuit of innovation for its national interests is acceptable, the behavior exhibited goes well beyond traditional espionage. He cited a recent Chinese plot to infiltrate an Australian research institution as an example of the daily occurrences of such activities.
The Five Eyes intelligence chiefs called on private industry and academia to collaborate in countering these threats, with a primary focus on the misuse of artificial intelligence tools. They expressed concerns that AI could amplify a range of misconduct and accused China of stealing personal and corporate data at an unmatched scale.
The statement echoes the group’s previous warnings in May about a large-scale Chinese spy operation that targeted critical infrastructure and other sectors. The Chinese government had rejected these allegations, dismissing them as a “collective disinformation campaign.”
Wray underscored China’s extensive hacking program, describing it as more extensive than that of all other major nations combined, backed by a substantial network of physical spies and trade secret theft from private businesses and research institutions. He stressed the power China wields due to the combination of these tools on an unprecedented scale.
The intelligence chiefs called for global cooperation in addressing the misuse of AI and the protection of intellectual property, emphasizing that this issue goes beyond individual countries and warrants a collective response.
