Report Raises Concerns About Canadian Universities, Others Collaborating With Beijing-Backed AI Labs

Artificial intelligence security cameras with facial recognition technology are seen at the 14th China International Exhibition on Public Safety and Security at the China International Exhibition Center in Beijing on Oct. 24, 2018. Nicolas Asfouri/AFP via Getty ImagesA new report warns that prominent Western universities, including Canadian institutions, have collaborated with Chinese artificial-intelligence labs on research that could advance Beijing’s mass-surveillance apparatus and other tools tied to human rights abuses.The Dec. 8 report, authored by the New York-based business intelligence firm Strategy Risks in partnership with the non-profit Human Rights Foundation, outlines how leading Western institutions in countries such as the United States, Canada, and others in Europe have collaborated with Chinese AI labs that are part of, or closely connected to, Beijing’s surveillance and security apparatus.