CHINA is demanding a full investigation into the apparent suicide of a Chinese scientist working at the University of Michigan in the United States, apparently after being interrogated by the FBI.

Wang Danhao was found dead on March 19 after falling from an upper storey of the university’s George G Brown building. China’s US embassy says he had previously been subject to “hostile questioning” by US federal law enforcement, though the FBI has declined to confirm any details.

The Chinese Chicago consulate accused the US of “groundlessly” interrogating Chinese scholars, who have been targeted following political accusations that China seeks to steal US research. It called on the US to “give the family of the victim and the Chinese side a responsible explanation [and] stop any discriminatory law enforcement targeting Chinese students and scholars.”

Wang was a research assistant specialising in semiconductors, a field crucial to advanced technology including AI.

The US has tried to cut Chinese access to semiconductor technology and manufacturing equipment, prompting a drive by Beijing for self-sufficiency in these areas. Chinese chip-makers must now demonstrate that at least 50 per cent of the tools they use are produced within China, while the state-owned China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund has invested hundreds of billions of yuan in domestic chip-makers.

The US looks set to double down on the approach with Republican and Democrat senators currently proposing a bipartisan Multilateral Alignment of Technology Controls on Hardware (Match) Act, which would require other countries to align with US restrictions on semiconductor equipment exports to China within 150 days or face sanctions.