Canadian, US Intel Agencies Warn Tech Startups of Exploitation by China

Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) Daniel Rogers leaves a meeting of the National Security Council on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on June 13, 2025. The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick

Canadian and U.S. intelligence partners have issued a warning to Western technology startups of potential exploitation in pitch competitions organized by Chinese regime entities.

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and its U.S. intelligence partners issued a bulletin on Sept. 4 to advise technology startups that while international pitch competitions can provide exposure and funding opportunities, they can also lead to “exploitation by foreign entities looking to acquire Western innovation and skills for economic and military advantage.”

“CSIS actively works with its partners, including the U.S., Five Eyes and others around the world in order to identify threats, inform Canadians and share mitigation measures,” CSIS Director Dan Rogers said in a Sept. 4 news release. “Canadian tech startups are essential to the Canadian economy and should protect themselves from potential threats or exploitation by threat actors.”

International pitch competitions affiliated with the Chinese regime or Chinese Communist Party (CCP) can pose “significant risks” to Western tech startups’ intellectual property, data, and talent, the bulletin says.

The CCP has organized pitch competitions in cities across Canada, the United States, and other nations over the last several years, the CSIS and its U.S. partners say. The competitions encourage startups to pitch their innovative projects with the goal of winning paid trips to China to compete for cash awards, subsidies, investment, preincubation support, and market-entry opportunities, among other benefits.

Although these competitions are advertised as “lucrative opportunities” for startups, intelligence agencies have found evidence indicating that the competitions primarily intend to attract Western technology and talent to China to “benefit China’s technology hubs and to advance China’s stated goals of achieving global leadership in key technology sectors.”

“Ultimately, they can fail if their stolen assets are used by competitors to outperform them in global markets,” the bulletin says. “These events can also help hostile foreign nations acquire Western technology and skills to bolster their economic and military capabilities.”

Some competitions require startups to disclose details such as data on patents, their business, financial and marketing strategies, as well as personal data and photos.

Additionally, the bulletin warns that winning prizes and investments may be contingent upon the startup forming a business in China, “where foreign firms often face state-sponsored efforts to acquire their IP, data, production processes, or talent through illicit and licit means.”

CSIS issued the bulletin jointly with its U.S. intelligence partners, namely the National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC), the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and the Office of Economic Security and Emerging Technology of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI).

“International pitch competitions should be a nurturing ground for innovation, not a hunting ground for foreign threat actors and competitors to coopt Western technology and talent for their own benefit,” NCSC Acting Director James Cangialosi said in a Sept. 4 ODNI news release.

Protective Measures

The bulletin recommends that startups do their due diligence prior to entering pitch competitions by thoroughly researching the competition organizers as well as others privy to the event. Startups should verify whether the organizers are associated with foreign governments and where their funding originates from.

The Canadian and U.S. intelligence services also recommend reviewing the competition’s guidelines to understand how startups’ data will be used, researching the laws where the organizers and potential investors operate, and determining whether the organizers are compelled by law to share startups’ data or assist their host government.

Before considering starting a business in China, the bulletin advises startups to review recent laws in China that provide the Chinese regime “enhanced legal grounds for accessing data of foreign firms.”

Additionally, startups should protect their data by considering filing for patent protection in Canada, in the United States, and in the competition organizer’s nation before the event. The bulletin warns that publicly disclosing an invention before filing for patent protection can make it ineligible for patentability.

Startups can use non-disclosure agreements with anyone privy to their pitch and insist that strict protocols for appropriate data handling are followed. Startups can also include legal protections for their assets in all contracts and investment documentation.

The intelligence agencies also advise startups to limit their exposure and “only reveal what is necessary” at pitch competitions. Startups are recommended to set red lines and prepare responses should a judge or potential foreign investor request information about their project that they wouldn’t normally share, and to review all documents that competition organizers or investors require a signature for.

Moreover, startups should monitor the market for potential infringements related to their project during and after the competition, and engage with federal agencies to gather and share threat information and risk mitigation resources.

Those in Canada can report non-immediate threat information related to national security to CSIS, while those in the United States can contact their local FBI Field Office, the NCSC, or the the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations.