As geopolitical competition in artificial intelligence intensifies, former CIA intelligence officer Michele Rigby Assad has warned that American corporations are significantly underestimating the risk of foreign intelligence operations targeting their technology and leadership. Assad, who served in the CIA from 2002 to 2012, now operates as a private corporate counterintelligence consultant.
Her comments follow an ongoing investigation by the Nvidia board into whether CEO Jensen Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort. While the investigation is pending and Nvidia has not confirmed any compromise of company secrets, the situation highlights broader federal warnings regarding corporate espionage. Since 2020, the FBI has reported that roughly half of its 5,000 active counterintelligence cases involve China, with new cases opening at a rate of approximately one every 10 hours.
Assad notes that companies often succumb to 'optimism bias,' failing to recognize that typical business interactions—such as conference invitations, recruitment offers, or friendly networking—can serve as entry points for intelligence gathering. Foreign operatives often attempt to exploit personal vulnerabilities or financial incentives to gradually extract sensitive information.
'If you have products that are of interest to the Chinese and you've spent millions or billions of dollars developing that product, you are a target,' Assad told Business Insider on November 11, 2026. She suggests that espionage is often a more cost-effective strategy for foreign actors than internal research and development.
The consultant has specifically raised concerns regarding strategically sensitive regions, such as Florida's Space Coast, where she believes intelligence operatives have been active in social settings. These concerns mirror a 2023 federal advisory that cautioned commercial space companies about foreign attempts to acquire sensitive data. Assad advocates for mandatory counterintelligence training across the private sector to ensure employees can identify the subtle indicators of recruitment or infiltration.
As reported by Business Insider, China has denied the allegations of espionage surrounding these corporate investigations. Nvidia has stated it has no evidence of a national security compromise, though the company remains a focal point in the wider US-China technology landscape. Assad maintains that until corporate leadership prioritizes defensive training, valuable American intellectual property will remain at significant risk.
Source: Business Insider
