The United States is engaging in a broader range of espionage against China, including Chinese companies, to address the country’s status as both a military and economic threat, CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis said. During a rare public appearance at a cybersecurity conference, Ellis stated the nature of intelligence collection has evolved since the Cold War. Unlike past rivals, China "poses a fundamentally different kind of threat" because the competition is economic.

Ellis argued that under Communist Party rule, China lacks an independent business community, making Chinese companies legitimate targets for intelligence in areas like artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and biotechnology. He noted valuable intelligence resides in the private sector. His remarks mark a subtle departure from previous administrations that sought to distinguish between permissible national defense espionage and economically motivated spying.

The timing coincides with President Trump's scheduled state visit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. On the same day, the Trump administration issued a public advisory warning Chinese AI companies were engaging in "industrial scale" theft of trade secrets from U.S. counterparts. The advisory, from the NSA, FBI, and CISA, cited leading Chinese AI firms engaged in the practice since at least 2024.

Ellis praised recent CIA overhauls, including the elevation of a cybermission center, which he said enabled the agency to achieve national security objectives, citing the U.S. raid in Venezuela that led to the capture of Nicolás Maduro.