Former Google Engineer Convicted In US For Stealing AI Secrets For His Company In China

Last Updated:January 31, 2026, 13:15 IST

Linwei Ding was found guilty of seven counts of trade secrets theft and seven counts of economic espionage for stealing Google's secrets for his Chinese company.

A former Google engineer was convicted for stealing the company's secrets for his Chinese company. (IMAGE: REUTERS)

A Chinese citizen who previously worked for Google as a software engineer has been convicted of stealing artificial intelligence technology from the company to help him create a start-up in China.

A 12-person jury in a federal court in San Francisco, California, found Linwei Ding guilty of seven counts of trade secrets theft and seven counts of economic espionage after an 11-day trial. He was part of a team that designed and maintained Google’s AI supercomputer data system, according to The New York Times.

Ding could face up to 10 years in prison for each count of trade secret theft and 15 years for each count of economic espionage. This case is one of several that have surfaced in recent years against Chinese nationals in the United States as tensions between the two countries have intensified over technological supremacy.

“This conviction exposes a calculated breach of trust involving some of the most advanced AI technology in the world at a critical moment in AI development," said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A Eisenberg. “Ding abused his privileged access to steal AI trade secrets while pursuing PRC government-aligned ventures."

Who Is Linwei Ding?

Ding was a software engineer at Google with access to sensitive information about the company’s AI supercomputing infrastructure. He began working for Google in early 2019, and quit suddenly in January 2024 when he left for Beijing. He was arrested three months later.

During the trial in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, the government presented evidence that Ding stole more than 2,000 pages of confidential company information in 2022 and 2023. He pulled the files from Google’s network and uploaded them to his personal Google Cloud account.

After this, Ding pitched investors on funding a start-up that would build an AI supercomputer based on Google’s technology, according to the government. He later applied for a program sponsored by the Chinese government known as a talent plan in Shanghai, where he planned to “help China to have computing power infrastructure capabilities that are on par with the international level."

The verdict was praised by US attorneys and Google. “In today’s high-stakes race to dominate artificial intelligence, Linwei Ding betrayed both the US and his employer. This case marks the first-ever conviction on AI-related economic espionage charges," said FBI Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky.

News world Former Google Engineer Convicted In US For Stealing AI Secrets For His Company In China

Read More