U.K. accuses China of using academics to spy on AI and other tech research

Policemen stand guard outside the Chinese Embassy in London on Oct. 18, 2015. | REUTERS

Oct 1, 2026

LONDON – Britain’s MI5 spy agency issued an unprecedented alert on Wednesday to warn that a Chinese organization was involved in funding academic research into topics such as AI on behalf of Beijing’s state security service.

In its “Espionage Alert,” MI5 said more than 100 U.K.-based academics had contributed to projects funded by the China General Technology Research Institute (CGTRI), which had “very strong ties” to the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS), Beijing’s civilian intelligence service.

“MI5 has identified that the primary purpose of CGTRI is to fund academic research that directly improves MSS technical capability for espionage,” the alert said.

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