11 U.S. nuclear scientists are missing or dead, but so are 9 in China, which begs the question: Are we in a secret ‘Scientist War?’

It’s a strange and unsettling reality that we’re currently seeing a wave of unexplained deaths and disappearances among elite scientists in both the United States and China. According to Newsweek, there have been 11 cases in the U.S. and at least nine in China, involving experts working in sensitive fields like military artificial intelligence, hypersonics, and space defense. This has led many to wonder if we’re witnessing a silent, high-stakes “scientist war.” 

The star of China’s booming AI defense sector, Feng Yanghe, is a prime example of these concerning events. A professor at the National University of Defense Technology, Feng was only 38 years old when he died in a car crash in 2023. What’s particularly odd is that state-run media reports described him as having been “sacrificed,” and he was buried in a cemetery reserved for the Communist Party elite and revolutionary martyrs. 

An experienced researcher of the Chinese military, who spoke to Newsweek under the condition of anonymity, noted that it’s highly unusual for someone killed in a traffic accident to be described in this way. They pointed out that Feng was a mastermind behind AI simulations for potential Taiwan war-gaming scenarios, and his death, which occurred in the middle of the night, raises plenty of eyebrows.

It gets creepy when you pull up the details

China has seen a series of similar losses. For instance, Zhang Xiaoxin, a space expert at the National Satellite Meteorological Centre, died in another car crash in 2024. Another expert, Chen Shuming, who led high-end weapon chip research, died in 2018, again in a car crash. 

The list goes on to include experts in data security and biomedical chemistry, with many of these deaths attributed to accidents or unspecified medical episodes. It’s definitely not a good look for the scientific community, and as the anonymous researcher pointed out, it’s hard to ignore that these fields are essential for decisive military prowess.

Meanwhile, the situation in the U.S. has prompted its own share of investigations. CNN reported that there have been at least 10 individuals connected to sensitive nuclear and aerospace research who have died or disappeared in recent years. The circumstances vary wildly, ranging from unsolved homicides to missing persons cases. 

For example, a nuclear physicist and MIT professor was fatally shot outside his home, while a retired Air Force general went missing from his New Mexico residence, leaving behind his belongings. Now, the FBI and the House Oversight Committee have launched investigations to look for potential connections between these cases. 

While some families have pointed to personal struggles or pre-existing medical conditions, the sheer number of high-level experts involved has caught the attention of federal officials. Even President Trump weighed in, calling the situation “pretty serious stuff” and expressing his hope that it’s all just a coincidence. 

On the other side of the Pacific, the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., stated they were not aware of the situation. They emphasized that China is committed to promoting scientific progress through healthy competition. Still, the pattern of these deaths is hard to overlook. Scientists have always been political targets because they impact progress in critical areas. So, through history, they have been recruited or assassinated as needed. The stakes are incredibly high.

These scientists are the ones pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in fields that literally change the world order. When you look at the total number of experts involved, it’s clear that this isn’t just about a few random accidents. 

The anonymous military researcher suggested that the point might not be to eliminate an entire group, but rather that taking out some of the brightest minds can have a significant deterrent effect. It’s a chilling thought, especially when you consider that many of these individuals spent years training at top universities and were instrumental in their respective nations’ modernization efforts.

We’re in an era of intense global competition, and technology is at the very heart of that struggle. If you’re a fan of tech like I am, it’s hard not to be concerned about the loss of such talent. We’ll have to wait and see what the ongoing investigations uncover, but for now, the mystery remains.