Britain’s MI5 spy agency issued an unprecedented alert warning that a Chinese organisation was funding academic research into AI and other sensitive fields on behalf of Beijing’s state security service.
In its “Espionage Alert” on Wednesday, MI5 said the China General Technology Research Institute (CGTRI) was involved in financing research on behalf of the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS), Beijing’s civilian intelligence service. MI5 said CGTRI has “very strong ties” to the MSS and that it identified the institute’s primary purpose as improving the MSS’s technical capacity for espionage.
MI5 said the institute has supported projects involving more than 100 academics based in the UK. It added that researchers contributed to work on areas including artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, covert communications systems and steganography, which involves hiding information within messages or other objects.
MI5 said the activity supports espionage and poses a threat to UK national security.
MI5 Alert And Research Topics
MI5 said it was the first time the agency had independently published an alert in public. It also presented its warning as part of a broader pattern of allegations about Chinese intelligence activity, highlighting what it described as the pressure points between British security concerns and government efforts to develop links with Beijing.
The agency said some academics and institutions may have engaged with CGTRI in good faith and without knowing about the organisation’s close relationship with the MSS. However, MI5 said those who continued to work with CGTRI after the warning would face legal risk.
Government Response And Legal Risk
Security minister Dan Jarvis said he had written to university leaders across Britain to ensure staff ended any relationship with the Chinese organisation.
Jarvis said the alert showed attempts by Chinese intelligence to benefit covertly from the expertise and research of UK academics, potentially undermining national security and that of Britain’s allies. He said international partnerships remained important for universities and research institutes, but that the government would take “robust action” to address the threat.
MI5 said anyone continuing ties with CGTRI could be prosecuted under Britain’s National Security Act, passed in 2023 to strengthen powers aimed at foreign spying and hostile state activity.
China Denies Claims
China’s embassy in Britain rejected MI5’s claims, describing them as “imaginary and purely fabricated”. In a statement, a spokesperson said the embassy had lodged formal representations with the UK and urged British intelligence authorities to stop spreading what it called falsehoods.
The embassy said the allegations undermined educational exchanges and research cooperation between China and the UK.
Britain–China relations have become increasingly strained in recent years. The UK government has sought improved ties with Beijing for trade and approved plans for China to build its latest embassy in Europe in London. At the same time, it has repeatedly warned about Chinese spying efforts and attempts to affect UK democracy.
Last year, MI5 director-general Ken McCallum said Chinese spies posed a daily national security threat and were using fake job adverts to try to recruit UK professionals and obtain information. MI5 also issued an alert to UK lawmakers in November, saying Chinese agents were targeting them by posing as headhunters or companies.
In June, agencies from the “Five Eyes” alliance — the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand — published a warning that Chinese spies were aggressively using online job platforms to recruit people with access to sensitive information. The Chinese embassy in London said that warning was “entirely fabricated” and amounted to “malicious slander”.
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1 October 2026
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