Sarah Wynn-Williams, former Director of Global Public Policy at Facebook (now Meta), testified before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism on Wednesday alleging that Meta compromised U.S. national security in efforts to gain favor with China.
Wynn-Williams claimed that Meta executives, including CEO Mark Zuckerberg, misled stakeholders about their engagements with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
In her opening statement, Wynn-Williams stated, “We are engaged in a high-stakes AI arms race against China, and during my time at Meta, company executives lied about what they were doing with the Chinese Communist Party to employees, shareholders, Congress, and the American public.”
She asserted that, starting in 2015, Meta provided technical briefings to CCP officials on emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), aiming to facilitate Meta’s expansion into the Chinese market. According to her, Meta executives “did these things in secret to win favor with Beijing and build an $18 billion dollar business in China.”
Additionally, Wynn-Williams accused Meta of developing censorship tools at the behest of the CCP and sharing American user data with Chinese authorities. She highlighted the removal of Chinese dissident Guo Wengui’s Facebook account as an example of Meta’s compliance with Chinese censorship demands.
In response, Meta has denied these allegations, stating that they do not operate services in China and labeling Wynn-Williams a disgruntled former employee. The company also attempted to block the publication of her memoir, “Careless People,” which details her experiences and criticisms of Meta’s practices.
“The greatest trick Mark Zuckerberg ever pulled was wrapping the American flag around himself and calling himself a patriot and saying he didn’t offer services in China while he spent the last decade building an $18 billion business there,” Wynn-Williams shared.
Senators Josh Hawley and Richard Blumenthal expressed concern over Wynn-Williams’ testimony, emphasizing the need for transparency and accountability from tech companies regarding their international dealings and potential impacts on U.S. national security.
