• Nearly $1 billion in federal grants have supported collaborations between U.S. universities and 45 Chinese defense laboratories, advancing sensitive military technologies like AI, hypersonic missiles and aerospace materials.

• Many Chinese labs hide their military ties by removing "defense" branding, making it harder for U.S. institutions to assess risks. Examples include labs linked to China's nuclear weapons program partnering with Princeton and the University of Tennessee.

• The National Science Foundation (71% of identified grants), Department of Energy and Office of Naval Research have financed these projects, despite their potential to strengthen China's military capabilities.

• Current U.S. export controls exempt academic research, allowing collaborations with entities otherwise blacklisted for security risks. Critics demand stricter oversight, including a centralized federal vetting body for high-risk partnerships.

• These partnerships risk intellectual property theft, undermine U.S. technological superiority and violate research ethics by letting China control access to U.S.-funded data – effectively aiding a geopolitical rival.

Nearly $1 billion in U.S. federal research funds have flowed into collaborations with Chinese defense laboratories – many of which are actively advancing Beijing's military capabilities – according to a groundbreaking study published this week.

The report released by the Virginia-based Center for Research Security and Integrity (CRSI) exposes how American universities and government-funded institutions have partnered with Chinese state-run defense labs on sensitive research. It raises urgent concerns about national security and the unintended bolstering of a strategic adversary.