China spy chief warns AI poses growing national security risks
China’s Minister of State Security Chen Yixin has warned that artificial intelligence poses growing risks to national security, accusing foreign powers of using the technology to threaten social order and political stability.
In an article published online on Sunday, Chen said “hostile forces” were using generative AI to “fabricate political rumours and spread harmful information”. He said such efforts could lead to public opinion and cognitive warfare targeting China, threatening its political, institutional and ideological security.
Chen described AI as “the main battleground for global technological competition and a new track for major power strategic rivalry”.
His warning comes as Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to meet US President Donald Trump in Washington this month, with AI governance and safety expected to feature in their discussions. The comments also come as leading US technology executives call for greater caution over the rapid development of advanced AI.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently warned that the pace of AI development was “reckless”, while OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said he agreed with his assessment.
Chen did not call for slowing AI development or focusing on existential risks. Instead, he pointed to the advanced hacking capabilities of Anthropic’s Claude Mythos and OpenAI’s ChatGPT-5.5-Cyber, warning that such technologies could pose serious risks to China’s critical information infrastructure.
He also accused foreign intelligence agencies of using AI-powered web crawlers, data mining and profiling tools to collect sensitive information, including national data, trade secrets and citizens’ personal information.
Chen said the US-Iran war had demonstrated AI’s growing military importance, with technological advantages potentially translating into battlefield gains.
He urged China to ensure independent control over key technologies, including the advanced computer chips required to train AI models, as part of efforts to safeguard the country’s technological sovereignty.