Influencers Mobilized to Spread China AI Threat Narrative

Build American AI ran a campaign through influencer marketing company SM4 that bundled praise for American-made AI with anti-China messaging.

In the early stage, lifestyle and parenting influencers posted ads on Instagram and TikTok emphasizing AI's convenience, innovation within the US, and job creation, and it has now expanded into messaging that frames China's AI rise as a US security threat. Proposed rates reached as high as $5,000 per TikTok video.

• The posts were labeled as ads, but the actual sponsor was not sufficiently disclosed.
• Sample copy included frames such as US-China AI competition, protecting personal data, and defending jobs.
• The campaign was described as part of a dark money network linked to Leading the Future.
• OpenAI and Palantir stated they did not directly fund the group.
• Greg Brockman, Joe Lonsdale, Andreessen Horowitz, and Perplexity were named as backers.

Experts criticized this approach as political messaging that hides its source, calling it essentially propaganda.