China's Big Data Platform Targets Overseas Chinese Communities

The Overseas Chinese Affairs Big Data Platform, housed in a 500-square-meter laboratory at Jinan University in Guangzhou, automates surveillance of overseas Chinese communities. The system scrapes data from Instagram, Facebook, X, Weibo, and WeChat using machines positioned in foreign countries and routed through proxy networks to avoid detection. Collected data undergoes processing—translation to Chinese, keyword extraction, relationship mapping—then feeds into analysis systems. The platform outputs reports used by Chinese government agencies, including the United Front Work Department, for influence operations targeting overseas Chinese.

A leaked report titled “Profiles of Ethnic-Chinese Leading Talent in the Chip Field, Their Circle Characteristics, and Work Recommendations” demonstrates the platform’s application. It identified executives at Taiwanese AI company Skymizer, students at a Taiwanese research university, and a Microsoft AI research center director, recommending relationship-building through “hometown associations, alumni associations, professional societies.”

The platform accelerates traditionally manual intelligence operations. Leaked documents reference 2021-era machine learning and natural language processing, with unclear incorporation of modern large language models. Remote operations eliminate geographic constraints that previously limited reach, enabling systematic identification of overseas Chinese without their knowledge for potential recruitment or influence.