WNAM MONITORING: The US Defense Department has added several major Chinese companies including Alibaba, Baidu and BYD to a list of entities it says support China’s military, in a move that could further strain ties between Washington and Beijing.
The additions were announced Monday in a Federal Register notice, updating the Pentagon’s annually issued list of Chinese companies that US authorities believe aid the People’s Liberation Army.
Known as the 1260H list, it identifies companies that Washington says are linked to China’s military modernization or operate as part of China’s military-civil fusion strategy.
The latest update means the US has now designated three of China’s leading artificial intelligence (AI) companies — Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent — as firms allegedly aiding the Chinese military. Tencent was added to the list in 2025.
The inclusion of BYD, China’s largest electric vehicle maker, expands the scope of the Pentagon’s scrutiny to one of the country’s most prominent clean technology and automotive companies.
The updated list also restored two major Chinese memory chipmakers, ChangXin Memory Technologies and Yangtze Memory Technologies, which had appeared in earlier US government designations.
The companies had been included in a previous version of the list that was briefly posted in February before being withdrawn shortly afterward.
The Pentagon’s 1260H list does not by itself impose broad immediate sanctions. However, it can limit listed companies’ ability to contract with the US military or receive certain research funding, while also serving as a warning signal for investors and US agencies.
The designation is widely viewed as a possible precursor to tighter trade, investment or export restrictions.
First published in 2021, the 1260H list now includes more than 100 Chinese businesses across sectors including aviation, semiconductors, construction, shipping, communications, computer hardware and artificial intelligence.
To be listed, a company must operate directly or indirectly in the US and be assessed by the Pentagon as contributing to China’s military or defense industrial base.
