US Tech Powers China's Growing Surveillance System

Published Date : 11/6/2025 

A new report by the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party highlights the concerning trend of American technology being used to support China's surveillance and repression efforts, both domestically and internationally. 

A new report by the Democratic minority of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has raised alarming concerns about China's rapid expansion of facial recognition, biometric surveillance, and predictive policing technologies. The report, released by Ranking Member Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, argues that the CCP’s embrace of advanced artificial intelligence, mass surveillance architecture, and data-driven policing is central to what it describes as a “system of pre-emptive repression.”

Krishnamoorthi also contends that recent shifts in U.S. policy have weakened export controls, allowing American technology to continue supporting surveillance networks used in human rights abuses. The report asserts that China has built the most extensive surveillance state in the world, relying on real-time facial recognition and an expanding array of biometric data to track the movements, behavior, and political expression of its citizens.

The systems are deeply integrated into daily life, from public squares to transportation hubs and workplaces. In regions such as Xinjiang and Tibet, surveillance reaches near-total saturation, enabling authorities to monitor entire communities and identify individuals viewed as potential political threats. The report concludes that these technologies have helped Beijing carry out campaigns of cultural repression against Uyghurs, Tibetans, Mongolians, and pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, actions the report describes as rising to the level of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Beyond China’s borders, the report finds that Beijing is exporting the same surveillance infrastructure through state-linked companies as part of its Digital Silk Road initiative. Chinese firms have marketed facial recognition platforms, data integration systems, and “smart city” public security technologies to more than 80 countries, often in ways that directly strengthen authoritarian governments and weaken civil liberties. According to the report, this export of surveillance infrastructure is not purely commercial but strategic, as it helps to normalize state monitoring of citizens and shift global governance norms toward a model of centralized political control.

The report also warns that China’s surveillance capabilities are rapidly advancing. It cites research suggesting that the government is experimenting with systems that combine facial recognition with emotional and physiological monitoring, including tools capable of analyzing stress levels or predicting “ideological deviation.” The Chinese Communist Party describes this approach as an effort to suppress dissent before it forms and solidify long-term political conformity under one-party rule.

Krishnamoorthi argues that the United States has, in recent years, deprioritized human rights protections in its China policy, which he says has allowed American-made semiconductors, cloud computing resources, and AI development tools to continue flowing into Chinese surveillance firms. The report calls for restoring and strengthening export controls designed to prevent U.S. technology from supporting repression and notes that tightening controls will require coordination with European and Asian allies because many of the most advanced AI systems and semiconductor manufacturing tools are produced collaboratively across borders.

The report recommends restricting access to high-performance computing used to train facial recognition and predictive policing algorithms, placing end-use controls on cloud computing services accessible to Chinese firms, and closing loopholes that allow subsidiaries and third-country distributors to obtain controlled components. It also calls for greater scrutiny of academic and research partnerships involving Chinese institutions tied to security and intelligence agencies.

Krishnamoorthi frames the stakes not only in geopolitical terms but ideological ones. The report argues that the U.S.-China competition is ultimately a contest between democratic self-government and a model of state surveillance designed to eliminate political dissent. “Our competition with the CCP is not only about markets or technology,” he said in a statement, but “it is about whether the future will be governed by fear or by freedom, by control, or by conscience.”

The report contends that the United States risks losing influence in global governance debates if it allows China to define acceptable uses of surveillance, biometric data, and AI. It argues that reaffirming human rights as a core pillar of U.S. foreign policy alongside renewed engagement with allies and international institutions is necessary to counter Beijing’s influence and prevent the spread of facial recognition-based authoritarian control models.

The report concludes that U.S. credibility depends on aligning its economic and technological policies with its democratic values. Without doing so, it warns, surveillance technologies developed or enabled by U.S. firms may continue to be used in the systematic repression of vulnerable populations and the global expansion of autocratic influence. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS): 

Q: What is the main concern of the report by the House Select Committee?

A: The main concern of the report is that China is rapidly expanding its use of facial recognition, biometric surveillance, and predictive policing technologies, which are used to suppress dissent and export authoritarian practices abroad.

Q: How is the United States contributing to China's surveillance state?

A: The report argues that recent shifts in U.S. policy have weakened export controls, allowing American technology to continue supporting surveillance networks used in human rights abuses in China.

Q: What regions in China are most affected by surveillance?

A: Regions such as Xinjiang and Tibet are most affected by surveillance, with near-total saturation of surveillance technologies enabling authorities to monitor entire communities and identify individuals viewed as potential political threats.

Q: What is the Digital Silk Road initiative?

A: The Digital Silk Road initiative is a part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, where Chinese firms are exporting surveillance infrastructure to more than 80 countries, often strengthening authoritarian governments and weakening civil liberties.

Q: What does the report recommend to counter China's influence?

A: The report recommends restoring and strengthening export controls, restricting access to high-performance computing, placing end-use controls on cloud computing services, and closing loopholes in the supply chain to prevent U.S. technology from supporting repression. 

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