Meta whistleblower claims $600 billion AI fallout

Sarah Wynn-Williams, a former Meta executive, is set to testify before Congress on allegations that the company secretly aided China's AI advancements, potentially compromising U.S. national security.

Wynn-Williams served as Meta’s global public policy chief until 2017 and has filed a whistleblower complaint with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

In her prepared remarks, Wynn-Williams accuses Meta of briefing Chinese officials on emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, as early as 2015.

She claims these briefings were aimed at helping China compete with American companies in the AI race.

“Meta started briefing the Chinese Communist Party as early as 2015,” she stated.

Wynn-Williams further alleges that Meta developed custom censorship tools for China and considered sharing user data with Chinese authorities.

She claims executives agreed to block accounts of Chinese dissidents and suppress political dissent to gain favor with the Chinese Communist Party.

"I watched as executives decided to provide the Chinese Communist Party with access to Meta user data—including that of Americans," Wynn-Williams said.

Meta has dismissed her accusations, with spokesperson Andy Stone calling her testimony “detached from reality and riddled with inaccuracies.”

The company maintains that it does not currently operate in China and has denied implementing the measures outlined by Wynn-Williams.

Her testimony comes amid heightened U.S.-China tensions over technology and trade.

The controversy also coincides with rising concerns about China’s AI capabilities following the release of advanced models rivaling U.S. firms like OpenAI earlier this year.

Wynn-Williams recently published a memoir titled Careless People, which details Meta’s internal culture and alleged cooperation with China.

Meta reportedly secured an arbitration ruling to block its release temporarily, though the book remains a bestseller.