U.S. hemorrhaging trade secrets to China
The U.S. is grappling with an intensifying challenge as China targets American companies to steal trade secrets, focusing on key industries such as autonomous driving technology, aerospace, and renewable energy. Major firms like Tesla, Apple, and General Electric have fallen victim to thefts involving cyberattacks, insider threats, and exploitative partnerships. These breaches erode U.S. innovation, threaten economic security, and enable China to fast-track its technological advancements without the same research investment.
Autonomous driving technology has been hit particularly hard. Tesla accused a former employee of downloading thousands of confidential files on its Autopilot system and transferring them to Xpeng, a Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer. Similarly, Apple faced a breach when Xiaolang Zhang, a former engineer, stole trade secrets related to its self-driving car project, intending to bring them to a Chinese startup. These thefts involve complex algorithms, sensor integration, and artificial intelligence breakthroughs—technologies worth billions of dollars in development. By acquiring these innovations illicitly, China bypasses years of research, gaining a significant advantage in the global race to dominate autonomous transportation.
The FBI has played a critical role in combating this issue, arresting dozens of individuals tied to Chinese espionage efforts. In one case, General Electric engineer Xiaoqing Zheng was convicted of attempting to smuggle turbine technology to China. In another, Chinese professor Hao Zhang was apprehended for stealing wireless communications technology for military applications. These arrests are part of the Justice Department’s larger “China Initiative,” which focuses on prosecuting cases of economic espionage. FBI Director Christopher Wray has described China’s intellectual property theft as “one of the largest transfers of wealth in human history,” underscoring the scale and severity of the problem.
Beyond autonomous driving, other industries have also been heavily impacted. Boeing suffered a major breach when Chinese hackers stole designs for its C-17 military transport aircraft. American Superconductor (AMSC) lost wind turbine technology to the Chinese firm Sinovel, costing the U.S. company over $1 billion in revenue and forcing layoffs. Such cases demonstrate how pervasive and damaging these thefts have become across multiple sectors.
In response, the U.S. government has tightened regulations on Chinese investments, increased scrutiny of research collaborations, and enhanced cybersecurity measures. But these efforts face significant challenges, including the difficulty of identifying insider threats and the interconnected nature of global supply chains. Meanwhile, China’s “Made in China 2025” initiative, which seeks to dominate industries such as artificial intelligence and renewable energy, continues to drive its aggressive pursuit of U.S. trade secrets. Protecting intellectual property has become a top priority for American policymakers and businesses, as the stakes for economic and national security could not be higher.
AP News, Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times.
