OpenAI says a suspected China-linked influence operation tried to sway the debate about US data centers

• OpenAI said it discovered a suspected Chinese-based influence operation to generate ill will toward US data centers.
• The suspected operation was identified because the users relied in part on ChatGPT.
• OpenAI said the suspect campaign didn’t gain meaningful traction online.

OpenAI said the users behind the suspected campaign it detailed on Wednesday “prompted ChatGPT in Simplified Chinese while repeatedly asking for English- and Chinese- language outputs.” The AI startup does not allow access to ChatGPT in China, meaning the campaign needed to rely on VPNs to access the AI tools.

Nimmo said the suspected campaign is important because, regardless of its effectiveness, it shows “the intentions of influence operators from China, and the narratives they’re testing.”

Another campaign targeted Trump’s tariffs

OpenAI said a second suspected operation, which it dubbed “‘Tech and Tariffs’ Campaign,” used ChatGPT to “generate short comments and political cartoons criticizing US tech policies and tariffs.”

Some of those posts included AI-generated cartoon images of President Donald Trump depicting him as careless, including one showing him sawing a ladder while standing on it.

OpenAI said the timing of the posts was notable because it happened around October 2025, when Trump announced an additional 100% tariff on Chinese goods.

Notably, OpenAI said the users for this suspected campaign asked that China’s leader, Xi Jinping, be excluded from any AI-generated cartoon images.

Unlike the first operation, OpenAI was unable to link the suspected tariff and political campaign to a particular entity in China.