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China opposes U.S. sanctions on five firms linked to ex-Google engineer

Beijing voiced firm opposition and said it would take unspecified necessary measures after U.S. sanctions on firms tied to Linwei Ding.

Updated Oct 21, 2026 · 00:13 UTC2 reports

The short version

  • The U.S. State Department sanctioned five Chinese companies connected to former Google engineer Linwei Ding.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • Beijing expressed firm opposition, and China's commerce ministry said the move severely harms Chinese businesses.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • Ding was convicted in January of economic espionage and trade secret theft, but a judge later dismissed the espionage charges, a dismissal the Justice Department is appealing.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • Beijing says it will take necessary measures but has not specified them, leaving its next steps unclear.[Associated Press · ABC News]

Key facts

  • The U.S. State Department sanctioned five Chinese companies connected to Linwei Ding, who founded Shanghai Zhisuan Technology.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • Beijing expressed firm opposition to the sanctions.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • China's commerce ministry said the move severely harms the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese businesses.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • Ding was charged in 2024 with stealing artificial intelligence trade secrets from Google while secretly working with two China-based companies.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • A federal jury in San Francisco convicted Ding in January of several counts of economic espionage and theft of trade secrets.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • A judge dismissed the economic espionage charges and sentenced Ding to 12 months in prison.[Associated Press · ABC News]

What remains uncertain

  • The Justice Department's appeal of the espionage charge dismissal is ongoing, and its outcome is unknown.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • China has not specified the necessary measures it says it will take in response to the sanctions.[Associated Press · ABC News]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.