Recently released reports warned that the technological advancements of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the fields of artificial intelligence and data collection could further intensify the CCP’s control over Chinese society. Exporting these technologies to authoritarian governments provides new tools for suppressing dissenting activities, ultimately leading to a world that increasingly resembles China.
According to Voice of America, the report stated, “We are living in an era of data-driven authoritarianism that is escalating. Technologies such as artificial intelligence and other tools for collecting and analyzing digital data are changing the way autocrats suppress dissent.”
The report highlighted that the CCP’s unprecedented collection and utilization of data come from both domestic and overseas sources in public and private sectors, with the aim of achieving “control over society.”
This report was published by the International Forum for Democratic Studies of the National Endowment for Democracy. The author, Valentin Weber, a senior researcher at the German Council on Foreign Relations, noted that the CCP’s advancements in four key technological areas merit attention and vigilance. These areas include the application of AI surveillance, neural and immersive technologies, quantum computing for decrypting encrypted information, and centralized digital currency.
The AI-driven surveillance system of the CCP can monitor facial expressions, gait, speech recognition, and other behaviors to identify “abnormal” activities and assist law enforcement agencies in detecting potential incidents in advance.
The report cited the example of the CCP’s “artificial brain” technology, which helped authorities monitor the public during the pandemic and was also deployed in the Xinjiang region of China.
Weber pointed out that the CCP’s surveillance governance can be divided into three stages: widespread surveillance through cameras, monitoring for abnormal activities, and the utilization of AI models like DeepSeek to take actions on behalf of the CCP or law enforcement agencies, such as automatically canceling dissenters’ hotel reservations or preventing them from protesting elsewhere.
Immersive technologies refer to devices like VR headsets and smart glasses that can collect users’ pupil changes and other subtle body reactions. Neural technologies, such as brain implants, allow direct collection of users’ brain data.
The report warned that immersive technologies could be used not only for disseminating government-approved political propaganda but also potentially during police interrogations.
China is at the forefront in quantum computing and communication fields. The report cautioned that with a powerful enough quantum computer, a country theoretically could decrypt a vast amount of data stored on the internet, whether it be enterprise data or private communications.
Moreover, the CCP has already launched its digital currency – Digital Renminbi. The report warned that through digital Renminbi, the CCP could gain access to users’ financial data, including usage patterns and geographical information, to monitor users and even “penalize what they consider improper behavior by restricting or cutting off purchases.”
Exporting surveillance technology is not new for the CCP, as they began exporting monitoring technology, including the sale of radio jamming equipment to Zimbabwe in the mid-2000s, intercepting long-distance calls among the Zimbabwean populace.
Currently, the CCP’s export of surveillance technology has become more mature and extensive. They provide these technologies to economically disadvantaged countries through tactics like “free trials,” subsidies, and natural resource exchanges, while also offering expert support.
The report indicated that the CCP not only sells surveillance technology to other authoritarian countries but also to “swing states” situated between democracy and autocracy.
The report noted, “China disproportionately exports AI surveillance systems to autocratic states and fragile democracies, which are more likely to import such technology during periods of domestic unrest and intensifying repression.”
Exporting technology to these countries also benefits Beijing, expanding its transnational repressive influence by assisting in monitoring or apprehending individuals disapproved by the CCP, such as Thailand, where purchased CCP technology frequently leads to the repatriation of dissenting individuals who fled China.
The report warned that with each new country adopting Chinese-style tools and strategies to suppress citizens, the world becomes increasingly like China.
Additionally, software from Chinese tech companies has become a potential channel for collecting data on overseas Chinese users and implementing surveillance, such as TikTok from ByteDance and WeChat from Tencent. Pinduoduo’s Temu shopping platform was even removed from the Google Play Store for unauthorized access to user’s private information and data analysis.
(Reference: Voice of America)