America
US Delays Blacklisting DeepSeek and More Than 100 Chinese Firms
Sources familiar with the matter said that the United States has postponed adding DeepSeek, CXMT and over 100 other Chinese companies to its trade blacklist. The companies received approval to be added to the Commerce Department's Entity List last year but have not been published. Sources told the Trump administration had delayed this move to avoid an escalation of tensions with China. Thus far, it has been suggested the delayed listings encompass companies associated with semiconductor, artificial intelligence and drone sectors, sectors U.S. officials regard as national security threats.
Key Highlights
- No actions have yet been taken by the US to ban DeepSeek, CXMT and more than 100 other chinese companies.
- The Trump administration is reportedly taking steps to avoid escalation with China.
- The blacklist, approved earlier in the day, includes over 75 Chinese companies related to both semiconductors and AI.
- There have been no new entries to the Entity List since October.
The United States has postponed plans to blacklist Chinese AI startup DeepSeek and memory chipmaker ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) along with over 100 other companies.
The companies were cleared for inclusion on the U.S. Commerce Department's Entity List last year, although the additions have not been released as the Trump administration seeks to avoid escalating tensions with China.
DeepSeek, CXMT and More to be blacklisted
An inter-agency committee approved companies to be placed on the Entity List such as DeepSeek and CXMT. Companies that are put on the list, usually cannot obtain U.S. goods, software or technology in any form without a licence which is likely to be denied.
A senior U.S. State Department official said DeepSeek had backed both China's military and intelligence operations, and tried to acquire sensitive chips from shell companies in Southeast Asia as recently as last year. In January, Anthropic revealed it had become aware of attempts by DeepSeek and two other Chinese AI labs to siphon off capabilities from its Claude AI platform, while a separate warning by OpenAI said that DeepSeek was also targeting its models.
The Biden administration previously identified CXMT, China's largest memory chipmaker, as a Chinese military company in the U.S. Defence Department's radar eyes. The Commerce Department reportedly contemplated putting the company on the Entity List over a year ago.
Over 100 Companies Still Await Publication
The list involves several Chinese companies that provided drones and military technology to Russia, which were recovered in Poland last year.
Various reports indicated that dozens of other Chinese companies also have been deemed potential national security threats for selling Nvidia chips banned from sale to Chinese universities. This includes companies producing drone and robotic dog technology for China's military, also among the targets.
Sources indicate that the US may blacklist as many as 175 Chinese companies engaged in advanced semiconductor production, semiconductor manufacturing equipment and AI model development.
Concerns Grow Over Adding Few New Entries to Entity List
Philip Luck from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said the United States has not taken action to add any new entities to the Entity List since October, which reflects the longest period between additions in more than a decade.
Jeffrey Kessler, Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security, has been looking to avoid blacklisting Chinese companies since late 2025 out of worry that it may further exacerbate tensions between Washington and Beijing. The Bureau of Industry and Security did not respond directly to questions about why no updates had been published. It said it employs a variety of policy and enforcement tools against bad actors, including the Entity List.
Source: Reuters
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