Four Z.AI founders worked on research linked to UK-flagged China institute
Bloomberg reports that four founders of Chinese AI company Z.AI took part in a joint research project with a technology institute that the UK government accused of having "very strong ties" to China's main spy agency, citing publicly available Chinese research papers and a UK "espionage alert." A Techmeme summary of the Bloomberg reporting identifies the funder as CGTRI and dates the project to 2018–2021, noting that MI5 said CGTRI had "very strong ties" to China's main spy agency. The reports describe the founders' participation in the research and do not allege espionage or that the research itself was improper.
The disclosure links founders of a prominent Chinese AI startup to a project co-funded by an institute that UK authorities flagged over alleged intelligence ties, a notable AI and national-security disclosure that does not by itself establish wrongdoing.