Former Google Engineer Detained and Accused of Illegally Taking AI Trade Secrets for China
The Chinese national highlighted the capability of his startup to adapt Google’s computational power platform to suit China’s specific conditions.
A former Google software engineer has been charged with stealing trade secrets related to artificial intelligence while working for Chinese competitors looking to gain an advantage in the AI field.
Linwei Ding, also known as Leon, faces four counts of trade secret theft, each carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. He was taken into custody on March 6 in Newark, California.
Allegedly, between May 2022 and May 2023, Ding took over 500 confidential files, including information about the hardware and software infrastructure that enabled Google’s supercomputing data centers to train large AI models using machine learning.
Shortly after engaging in the theft, a Chinese AI startup offered Ding a position as its chief technology officer with a generous salary and benefits package.
In May 2023, he founded an AI startup in Shanghai.
“We have experience with Google’s computational power platform; we just need to adapt and enhance it to create a platform that suits China’s national conditions,” Ding stated in a promotional document for his company on WeChat.
He was able to avoid detection by Google initially by copying data to his MacBook and then transferring it to a personal account, but suspicions arose when he uploaded files from the Google network to another personal account while in China.
After resigning from Google, Ding planned to travel to Beijing but was stopped when Google retrieved his work devices from his home.
Stealing US Innovation
Attorney General Merrick Garland shared details of the case at an American Bar Association Conference, emphasizing the protection of American technologies from unauthorized hands.
FBI Director Christopher Wray noted that incidents like this highlight the efforts made by Chinese-affiliated entities to steal American innovations.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco highlighted AI as a top priority for the task force, calling it the “ultimate disruptive technology.”
Mr. Wray also warned about the risks associated with generative AI in foreign adversaries’ attempts to interfere with the U.S. political process.
