Google AI trade secrets
Chinese national faces 175 years in prison for allegedly stealing Google AI trade secrets
A Chinese national faces a 175-year prison sentence for allegedly stealing AI trade secrets and leaking them to China-based tech companies.
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A case filed on 4 February in the Northern District of California, states that Linwei (Leon) Ding, a former Google engineer, uploaded more than 1,000 confidential company files to his personal Google Cloud account from May 2022 to May 2023.
Trade secret theft and indictment
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Ding faces 14 counts of economic espionage and theft of trade secrets.
He was accused of stealing sensitive information about the company’s hardware infrastructure and AI software platforms that power its AI supercomputing systems.
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The stolen data included proprietary blueprints for Google’s custom-designed chips, including the search engine’s SmartNIC, Tensor Processing Unit (TPU), and Graphics Processing Unit (GPU). This data also covered information about software essential for chip communications.
Reports indicate that Ding leaked these technologies to two Chinese firms, one of which he founded as an AI and machine learning startup in China.
The filing also claims that Ding shared trade secrets with a Chinese tech firm’s CTO and formed secret ties to advance the interests of the People’s Republic of China.
Furthermore, Ding circulated presentations to employees of his startup, referencing China’s national policies to enhance the country’s AI capabilities.
The U.S. increases crackdown on tech espionage
The case is not isolated since it forms a part of a larger U.S. initiative, the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, launched by the Biden administration in 2023.
This initiative fights the theft of advanced technology by countries like China and Russia.
If convicted on all the charges, Ding will serve 175 years in prison and pay up to $36.75 million in fines.
Google has not been indicted but has cooperated with authorities fully. The case will go to trial following discussions of a potential resolution.
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