The Pentagon has designated Alibaba, BYD, and Baidu as Chinese military companies, barring them from U.S. defense contracts and escalating Washington’s scrutiny of Beijing’s use of civilian tech giants for military purposes.
The updated list, published Monday, now includes 188 Chinese entities — up from roughly 130 last year — and marks the first time major consumer-facing brands have been targeted under the program created by Congress in 2021.
The Pentagon said Alibaba, the e-commerce and cloud computing behemoth traded on the New York Stock Exchange, is affiliated with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology — the agency overseeing the country’s defense industrial base.
“The Chinese military sought to acquire advanced technologies and expertise developed by Chinese companies, universities and research programs that appear to be civilian entities.”
BYD, the world’s dominant electric vehicle maker, and Baidu, China’s leading search engine, were flagged for the same ministry ties. President Donald Trump said in January he would welcome BYD if it built plants in the U.S. and hired American workers — but several lawmakers have pledged to push for an outright ban on Chinese EVs.
Also added: Unitree, the robotics company whose dancing robots impressed Simon Cowell on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent.” The Pentagon said the firm “knowingly received assistance” from the Chinese government through a program backing innovative companies critical to Beijing’s supply chain.
The list does not prohibit U.S. commerce with these firms but subjects them to reputational damage and potential future restrictions. It already included DJI, the consumer drone giant.
The Chinese Embassy fired back Monday, accusing Washington of “overstretching the concept of national security and making discriminatory lists to go after Chinese companies.”
“The U.S. should stop its wrong practice and create a fair, just and nondiscriminatory environment for Chinese companies.”
The embassy said Chinese companies observe local laws wherever they operate. Alibaba, BYD, Baidu, and Unitree did not respond to requests for comment.
