Former Google engineer convicted of stealing 2,000 AI trade secrets for China

A US federal jury found a former Google engineer guilty of stealing artificial intelligence trade secrets and sending them to China, according to the Department of Justice’s statement released Thursday.

The 38-year-old defendant, Linwei Ding, has been convicted of seven counts of economic espionage and theft of trade secrets. The US Northern District of California court ruling said that the actions were carried out for the benefit of the People’s Republic of China.

During the trial, Ding was accused of stealing more than 2,000 internal documents from Google’s systems. US Attorneys, in conjunction with the Federal Bureau of Investigation found that the files were transferred to his personal Google Cloud account while he was still on the company’s payroll.

The Justice Department first brought the charges in March 2024, but a later indictment added more counts to the allegations, including claims that Ding participated in Chinese AI technology initiatives. 

Former Google engineer sent data center schematics to Beijing

According to the evidence presented in court, the stolen documents contained plans for Google’s advanced computing infrastructure. The material included data center schematics capable of providing sufficient power for large artificial intelligence projects. 

The stolen information also provided information about Google’s internal software for managing computing clusters. That software coordinates thousands of specialized chips into a unified system, which is purportedly central to the company’s AI capabilities.

Jurors heard that the files contained technical details on proprietary hardware, including Google’s Tensor Processing Units and Graphics Processing Units. The data also covered how the software used in those chips communicates and executes several complex tasks.

Another leaked topic was Google’s SmartNIC technology, a specialized network interface card that supports communication within AI supercomputers, cloud networks, and other services.

According to witnesses’ testimonies, the document transfers happened between May 2022 and April 2023. Ding was an employee at Google at the time, while he was also building connections with companies based in China.

Prosecutors said Ding was in talks to become a chief technology officer at a PRC technology startup. By early 2023, he was working to establish his own AI and machine learning company in China as the company’s chief executive.

In presentations to investors, Ding allegedly said he could replicate advanced AI computing systems by adapting Google’s technology. Ding downloaded the material onto his personal computer less than two weeks before his resignation in December 2023, per court records.

Evidence citing Ding’s interactions with the Chinese government showed he applied to a Shanghai-based government-backed talent program in late 2023. 

“Ding’s application for this talent plan stated that he planned to help China have computing power infrastructure capabilities that are on par with the international level. The evidence at trial also showed that Ding intended to benefit two entities controlled by the government of China by assisting with the development of an AI supercomputer and collaborating on the research and development of custom machine learning chips,” the DOJ wrote in its statement.

National security concerns emerge as the AI race continues

US officials said Linwei Ding’s actions and the misuse of AI research pose risks to America’s national security. According to the FBI and DOJ, Silicon Valley is pioneering AI research that would boost the country’s economic growth and improve its security. 

“The theft and misuse of advanced artificial intelligence technology for the benefit of the People’s Republic of China threatens our technological edge and economic competitiveness,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani.

Ding is scheduled to appear at a status conference on February 3, where he will be sentenced. He is facing a potential 10-year sentence for each count of trade secret theft, while each economic espionage conviction could bring up to 15 years in prison.

Meanwhile, China has been investing heavily in AI infrastructure since 2021, directing around $100 billion into AI data centers. However, a recent industry report said the average utilization rate nationwide is just 32%.

In an opinion article published in China Economic Weekly, Rao Shaoyang of the China Telecom Research Institute warned the country against “blindly building intelligent computing centres” and asked planners to look at local demand before launching any new projects.

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