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As the United States has made great power competition a central tenet of its national security strategy, the primary mission of the U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) has shifted from counterterrorism to great power competition accordingly. SOF’s capabilities in the information domain, and its relationships with sub-state and non-state partners are major advantages in the “gray zone.” Three branches of SOF are major actors operating in the gray zone: psychological operations forces that conduct information and psychological warfare in remote regions; civil affairs soldiers who gather intelligence and carry out influence operations in remote and politically sensitive regions; Special forces that motivate and advise local forces to conduct proxy operations for the United States. SOF’s pivot to great power competition can threaten China’s overseas interests, destabilize its periphery, and challenge its territorial integrity. In response, some Chinese private security companies (PSCs) are developing information capabilities and cultivating relationships with sub-state and non-state actors to compete for influence with SOF. The potential rivalry between SOF and Chinese PSCs may turn countries along the Belt and Road Initiative into playgrounds for great power competition and increase the possibility of armed conflicts between the two great powers.