Chinese Biz Using AI to Hit US Politicians, Influencers with Propaganda

In a disturbing revelation, documents have uncovered how a Chinese company is using artificial intelligence (AI) to build a database of US politicians and influencers, with whom it plans to share propaganda. According to Vanderbilt University researchers, the company in question is GoLaxy, which has been operating in Hong Kong and Taiwan, targeting public opinion in favor of Beijing's policies.

However, what is new and alarming is that GoLaxy has now set its sights on US politicians and social media influencers, using AI-generated content to shape public opinion. According to a Vanderbilt security researcher, Professor Brett Goldstein, the company has been using DeepSeek, an AI tool, to generate social media profiles and map existing ones.

"Some of the documents refer to the company using DeepSeek in this," Goldstein told The Register. "But once we published the documents they started stripping references to the technology from [the] website very rapidly." This suggests that GoLaxy is trying to cover its tracks, but the extent of its activities remains unclear.

The use of AI in propaganda campaigns by Chinese companies like GoLaxy marks a new and unsettling trend. According to former NSA boss General Paul Nakasone, "We always rated the Russians as the best in information operations that impact America – China was really well down there." However, with the advent of AI, the Chinese are now closing the gap.

"They weren't that effective in being able to understand the message, understand the issues, understand perhaps even the language that they're using. But I do see this as being really the next generation of what we're going to see in gray zone conflict in the future," Nakasone said at a press conference at the DEF CON hacking conference in Las Vegas.

The company claims to be a social media mapping agency, monitoring public sentiment on Chinese networks. However, researchers and former NSA boss Nakasone say it has strong ties to the Chinese government. The documents reveal that GoLaxy is selling itself as an influencer, using AI-generated content to shape public opinion in a system described as "Smart Propaganda System," or "GoPro."

"We always rated the Russians as the best at information warfare, with the Chinese way down there. That's now changing rapidly," Nakasone warned. The documents detail how GoLaxy "already possesses the ability to be aware of political situations, target in real time, create high-quality content and perform rapid counterattacks." They also claim that the company has already produced certain political effects in relevant state departments.

Goldstein said Vanderbilt is still processing the documents, 99 percent of which are in Mandarin. However, researchers already see that GoLaxy is moving its attention to America, particularly politicians and other high-profile public figures. The company's AI-powered propaganda efforts pose a significant threat to democracy and free speech.

We reached out to GoLaxy for comment, but did not hear back by press time. The company denied the claims in a statement to the New York Times, calling them misinformation. However, Nakasone says that the case provides proof that China is upping its propaganda game, and calls on the commercial sector to develop tools to spot and block such efforts.

"We need the private sector to help out with synthetic messaging," he said. "We need to do it faster, more efficiently and at scale." The rapidly evolving nature of AI means that it will be a challenge to keep up with this technology. But one thing is clear: China's use of AI in propaganda campaigns poses a significant threat to democracy and free speech.