Sarah Wynn-Williams, a former director of global public policy at Meta Platforms Inc., is set to testify before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism that Meta compromised U.S. national security by fostering technology cooperation with China.
In her prepared remarks obtained by Bloomberg News, Wynn-Williams claims Meta engaged with Chinese authorities on critical emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence as early as 2015.
She asserts that these briefings were explicitly aimed at helping China surpass American companies in the AI sector.
According to Wynn-Williams, who left Meta, formerly known as Facebook, in 2017, Meta’s interactions with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) contributed to China’s current advancement in military-grade AI applications.
She argues that a “straight line” can be drawn from those early briefings to China’s deployment of AI tools allegedly built on Meta’s technology.
However, the testimony does not provide detailed evidence or direct involvement linking Meta’s technology to specific Chinese military projects.
Meta has rejected the allegations. Company spokesperson Andy Stone stated that Wynn-Williams’ claims are “divorced from reality and riddled with false claims.”
Stone noted that while Meta had previously explored business opportunities in China more than a decade ago, the company does not currently operate in China and has never successfully launched its services there due to censorship restrictions.
The controversy follows the release of Wynn-Williams’ memoir Careless People which details her experience at the company and became a bestseller.
Meta previously secured an emergency arbitration ruling to prevent her from making further disparaging remarks about the company.
The publication has drawn attention from U.S. lawmakers, including Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri who chairs the subcommittee and has expressed support for a bipartisan investigation into Meta’s dealings with China.
Hawley and a group of senators are now reviewing Wynn-Williams’s claims that Meta supplied AI tools, including surveillance software, to Chinese entities linked to the CCP.
He explained the need for a thorough examination of the company’s foreign relationships and the implications for national security.
Although Meta’s services remain banned in China, the company continues to generate advertising revenue from Chinese clients, according to filings cited in Wynn-Williams’ testimony.
Meta maintains that its commercial relationships in the region are transparent and do not involve any transfer of sensitive technology or AI capabilities to Chinese state actors.
As Wynn-Williams prepares to appear before Congress, the scrutiny surrounding Meta’s historical approach to foreign policy engagement and AI development is expected to intensify.
The outcome of the testimony could influence future regulations targeting U.S. technology firms operating or engaging with countries deemed strategic competitors.
Meta remains under growing pressure as lawmakers increase their focus on the intersection of technology national security and global influence.
