House Committee Investigates Foreign Influence Network with Links to Data Center Opposition
A Congressional hearing investigated a foreign influence network, allegedly led by U.S. tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham, that funded groups promoting anti-America propaganda. Testimony highlighted how Singham-backed organizations, such as the Party for Socialism and Liberation, mobilized opposition to data center projects. These efforts reportedly contributed to data center moratoriums, permanent bans, and project rejections across 14 states.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing titled "Trojan Horses: Covert Foreign Malign Influence Operations in America," focusing on a network of nonprofits, media outlets, and activist groups allegedly funded by U.S. tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham. Lawmakers, including Subcommittee Chairman Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.), accused these groups of promoting foreign governments' interests and pro-communist ideologies to weaken the United States.
Sam Lyman, head of research at the Bitcoin Policy Institute, testified that Singham-funded groups have echoed Chinese messaging on artificial intelligence, data centers, and U.S. technology policy. He specifically noted that organizers from the Party for Socialism and Liberation, part of the Singham network, mobilized opposition to data center projects nationwide. Lyman's research identified 21 campaigns in 14 states linked to the Party for Socialism and Liberation that contributed to data center moratoriums, permanent bans, and the rejection or cancellation of several projects, delaying or blocking proposed AI infrastructure investment across the country.
During the hearing, CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin and two associates were escorted out of the room for staging a protest, which lawmakers used to underscore the hearing's central point about protest theater functioning as foreign influence. Witnesses also connected Singham's network to Chinese state-linked institutions. Singham and CodePink have denied taking direction from the Chinese government, and no criminal charges have been filed.