Washington, Jan. 16 -- A group of eleven US senators has urged Energy Secretary Chris Wright to impose an outright ban on Chinese citizens working inside America's national laboratories, warning that their presence could weaken the United States' strategic advantage in the global race for artificial intelligence (AI).

The lawmakers wrote to Wright, stressing that allowing Chinese citizens access to these facilities poses a fundamental security risk, The Epoch Times reported.

The Department of Energy, which supervises 17 national labs and funds major research efforts in nuclear, environmental, energy and frontier technologies, has been under pressure since US President Donald Trump directed it in late 2025 to launch the "Genesis Mission"...