"Creating a Second Google in China" - The Ambitions of Suspect Ding and the U.S. Judicial Encirclement

1. "No Dismissal"—What Happened in Court on June 11

On the morning of June 11, 2025, on the 24th floor of the Northern District of California Federal Court in San Francisco, the judge rejected the defendant's motion to dismiss, which claimed procedural violations in the presentation of evidence, and declared that the trial would proceed as scheduled. The courtroom was filled with major U.S. media as well as Chinese media. The judge emphasized that "intellectual property leaks at the national security level should be thoroughly examined in court." The defense hinted at an immediate appeal, but the prosecution insisted on a jury trial. courthousenews.com

2. Who is Defendant Ding?—The "Shadow" of Silicon Valley

Defendant Ding, a 38-year-old software engineer from Fujian Province, China, has not acquired U.S. citizenship. He joined Google in 2019 on an H-1B visa and was a talented individual responsible for the software layer of the AI supercomputer infrastructure. He consistently received "Exceeds Expectation" in internal reviews and reportedly had almost full-level access to confidential information. justice.gov

3. From "500 Files" to "1000+α"—The Reality of the Misappropriation Scheme

According to the indictment, from May 2022 to the following May, Defendant Ding exported information using a "loophole" by copying and pasting code and diagrams into Apple Notes within his Google account, converting them to PDF, and uploading them to his personal GCP. Ultimately, over 1,000 files existed in his personal cloud, many of which were Google's "most important intellectual property," including TPU chip wiring designs, CUDA-compatible layers, and cluster management algorithms (CMS). justice.govreuters.com

4. Dual Employment and "Shanghai Zhisuan Tech"—The Backside of Chinese Business

In June 2022, Defendant Ding received an offer to become CTO from a Chinese emerging AI company, Company A, and in May 2023, he established his own startup, "Shanghai Zhisuan Tech." In investor materials, he boasted about being able to optimize and reconstruct Google's 10,000-card scale platform to Chinese specifications. He also applied for the Chinese government's "Thousand Talents Plan," with wording suggesting state support. reuters.comjustice.gov

5. Disruptive Technology Strike Force—The U.S. Government's Defense Line

This case has become a symbolic case for the "Disruptive Technology Strike Force," established by the Department of Justice and the Department of Commerce in 2023. The task force aims to prevent the outflow of "game-changing technologies" such as AI, quantum, and semiconductors abroad, conducting approximately 780 investigations in its first year. The 14 indictments in this case are considered the largest application of the "Economic Espionage Act (enacted in 1996)" to an AI case, according to a senior Justice Department official.justice.gov

6. The "AI Cold War" Debate that Stirred SNS - Voices from Japan and Overseas

• Gigazine Official X Account

  "Chinese Employee at Google Indicted for Taking AI Secrets, Including TPU and CMS Blueprints" gigazine.net

• Post on US Tech Forum (Silicon Valley RealEstateForums)

  "This guy is a triple agent. He had a friend scan his Google badge while he was raising funds in China. Jail time is certain." realestateforums.net

• Japanese IT Freelancer Y (Quoted from Personal X Post)

  "If the TPU design is handed over to a Chinese company, the landscape of the generative AI chip competition could change over several years. The dependency on TSMC might also decrease."

In the Japanese-speaking community, hashtags like "Microcosm of the US-China High-Tech Cold War" and "Dual Nationality/Dual Employment Issues of Chinese Elites in the US" surged.

7. Impact on Japanese Companies - Internal Fraud and Export Control

This incident drew attention for cleverly bypassing US company internal DLP (Data Loss Prevention). Japanese companies are also required to implement ① detection of cloud-to-cloud leaks, ② encryption of devices during overseas business trips, and ③ strict management of engineers' concurrent and side job applications. Additionally, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry plans to amend regulations in April 2025 to add advanced AI models to "specific fine technologies," mandating export applications to China and Russia. This incident is said to be a "catalyst for strengthening regulations."

8. "Loyalty of Engineers" and the Dilemma of Open Innovation

In Silicon Valley, the Anthony Levandowski incident, where self-driving technology from Waymo was taken, previously made headlines, but this is the largest scale in the AI field. Simultaneously, there remains a strong belief that "innovation cannot be achieved without talented foreign engineers." Companies are faced with the difficult task of navigating between "cross-border talent" and "national security." en.wikipedia.org

9. Future Schedule - Sentencing and Possibility of Settlement

The prosecution has stated its intention to seek a maximum sentence of 15 years (economic espionage) + 10 years (trade secrets) for each charge. The defense is expected to argue for leniency, claiming the defendant was confused by Google's corporate culture and did not receive proper guidance, but a full trial is more likely than a settlement. US judicial experts point out that "in cases where the national security card is played, negotiating a reduced sentence is extremely difficult."reuters.com

10. Summary - "AI Supply Chain Defense Battle": Japan is also a Stakeholder

The Ding defendant case is not merely the betrayal of a single engineer but is at the forefront of the US-China leadership struggle over the AI supply chain. Japanese semiconductor/cloud businesses may see changes in their risk profiles for transactions and joint ventures depending on the outcome of this trial. It is time to closely watch the conclusion of this legal battle and fundamentally reassess the governance of "people, goods, money, and information" within the company.