TLDR:
Key points of the article:
- The Pentagon is paying a Chinese Communist Party-linked venture capital firm for tutoring services.
- Primavera Capital, the Hong Kong-based firm, has ties to the Chinese government through its CEO, Fred Hu.
In an exclusive report by the Daily Caller News Foundation, it was revealed that Primavera Capital, a Chinese venture capital firm, has been receiving payment from the Pentagon for tutoring services provided through its ownership of Tutor.com. The CEO of Primavera Capital, Fred Hu, has longstanding connections to multiple CCP influence units, raising concerns about potential national security implications.
The report highlighted Fred Hu’s ties to the Chinese government, including his participation in the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and his role in the Western Returned Scholars Association (WRSA), which is subordinate to the United Front Work Department. Despite denials from a Primavera spokesperson, these connections have raised concerns among U.S. lawmakers about the ownership of Tutor.com.
Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton wrote a letter to the Department of Defense expressing concerns about the contract with Tutor.com, citing potential risks to U.S. national security due to the collection of personal data on users and the Chinese government’s access to this information. Several U.S. K-12 schools have also been identified as users of Tutor.com, further raising alarm about the potential exposure of private information to the Chinese Communist Party.
Additionally, Primavera’s investment portfolio includes companies tied to alleged human rights violations, such as the Chinese artificial intelligence company SenseTime, which was blacklisted by the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security for developing facial recognition technologies used in China’s Xinjiang province.
The article also highlighted recent legislative efforts to address concerns about Chinese influence in U.S. companies, including the House of Representatives passing the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Application Act, which could force ByteDance to sell its interest in TikTok due to its ties to the CCP. FBI Director Christopher Wray testified about the national security risks posed by TikTok’s connections to the CCP, underscoring the broader concerns raised by Primavera’s ownership of Tutor.com.
