Bitcoin Policy Institute Head of Research Testifies Before Congress on Foreign Influence Campaign Targeting American AI

EmitenTrust.com Sam Lyman testified before a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee that his research tracked 21 China-linked campaigns across 14 states that helped stall or block $23.6 billion in proposed U.S. AI infrastructure

WASHINGTON, Sept. 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Sam Lyman, head of research at the Bitcoin Policy Institute, testified Tuesday before the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on South and Central Asia on a foreign influence campaign targeting America's artificial intelligence buildout.

The hearing, "Trojan Horses: Covert Foreign Malign Influence Operations in America," examined how foreign adversaries use nonprofits, activist networks, and foreign state media to shape American public opinion. Subcommittee Chairman Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., presided. Lyman, a former senior adviser and chief speechwriter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, testified alongside other expert witnesses.

Lyman's testimony drew on two reports he authored this year for BPI, "Foreign Influence in the Campaign Against American AI." The reports document three vectors of influence: Chinese state media and bot networks pushing content against U.S. data centers to American audiences; U.S. nonprofits funded by Shanghai-based Marxist Neville Roy Singham; and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a Marxist-Leninist group with extensive foreign ties whose leadership is drawn from Singham-funded organizations.

The research tracked 21 PSL campaigns across 14 states that contributed to 10 data center moratoria, one permanent ban and four rejected or scrapped projects. Together, those efforts delayed, scaled back or blocked roughly $23.6 billion in proposed AI infrastructure investment.

"A war is raging between the world's two superpowers for AI supremacy," Lyman told the subcommittee. "And China is pulling all the levers of state to win it, including foreign influence operations."

Lyman also told lawmakers that opposition to data centers is not manufactured wholesale. "Two things can be true at once. There is a foreign influence campaign against American AI, and Americans have genuine concerns about the data center buildout that need to be heard," Lyman said.

As reported by CBS News, a federal grand jury in the Southern District of New York is investigating whether Singham violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act, unlawfully funneled money through nonprofits he controls, or made false statements on those nonprofits' tax filings. Organizations in the network have denied wrongdoing, and those that have addressed the allegations directly say they receive no funding or direction from the Chinese government.

Lyman will speak at Freedom Tech DC 2026, BPI's annual summit, Sept. 22-23 in Washington, DC. Request a press pass here: https://www.btcpolicy.org/summit#press

The written testimony and video of the hearing are at: https://www.btcpolicy.org/articles/congressional-testimony-the-foreign-influence-campaign-against-american-ai.

The underlying research, including an interactive map of the network and its sources, is at psyopanatomy.org.

About the Bitcoin Policy Institute

The Bitcoin Policy Institute is a nonpartisan, nonprofit research organization dedicated to advancing understanding of emerging technology and its implications for public policy. Through rigorous research, education, and policy analysis, BPI informs policymakers, regulators, and the public about emerging technology and Bitcoin's role in the financial system.

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SOURCE Bitcoin Policy Institute