Nine US lawmakers urge War Department to list Chinese tech firms tied to PLA

Washington DC [US] December 23 : A group of nine legislators has addressed a letter to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, requesting the inclusion of several Chinese tech companies in a department-maintained list for allegedly supporting the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), as reported by The Epoch Times (TET).

The letter, dated December 18, mentions that these nonmilitary tech companies are aiding in the "modernisation, internal security initiatives, and military projection capabilities" of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). In 2021, the National Defence Authorisation Act created a list to be kept by the Defence Department (now the War Department) identifying all Chinese military entities, aimed at preventing the U.S. government from accidentally supporting the military, surveillance, and intelligence functions of the CCP.

Among the firms the lawmakers proposed is the artificial intelligence company DeepSeek, which, as per a report from the Jamestown Foundation, has defence contracts with the PLA and other Chinese organisations amounting to tens of millions of yuan, or millions of U.S. dollars. The signatories of the letter are Republican chairpersons from nine distinct committees in Congress, including Senator Rick Scott (R-Fla.), and Representatives John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), Rick Crawford (R-Ark.), Andrew Garbarino (R-N.Y.), Rob Wittman (R-Va.), Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.), Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.), Darin LaHood (R-Ill.), and Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), as mentioned in the TET report.

The report indicates that a PLA procurement website has listed numerous procurement documents from April to October 2025, which specifically requested tools based on AI models developed by DeepSeek. The lawmakers further noted that DeepSeek is being integrated into Chinese policing and public security networks, where it is incorporated into video-surveillance systems to analyse faces, vehicles, and crowd dynamics, and utilized to compile case data, generate reports, and assist officers in the field in their decision-making, according to their letter.

The lawmakers are also advocating for the reinstatement of Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi on the list. In 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia overturned a previous listing of Xiaomi, citing a lack of adequate evidence regarding its connections to the Chinese military. They assert that Xiaomi plays a direct role in dual-use robotics for the manufacturing of defence materials and is also working alongside Chinese military medical research entities, as highlighted by the TET report.

The letter recognised the department's earlier inclusion of the Chinese internet giant Tencent to the list of Chinese military firms in January 2025. They also commended the department for the recent proposals to include Alibaba, Baidu, and the battery producer BYD. Additional companies the lawmakers requested to be added to the list comprise WuXi AppTec, WuXi Biologics, WuXi XDC, GenScript Group, Tiandy Technologies, Unitree Robotics, Livox, LeiShen, RoboSense, CloudMinds, Beijing Humanoid Robotics Innovation Centre, BOE Technology Group, Tianma Microelectronics, Hua Hong Semiconductor, Shennan Circuits Co. Ltd., Kingsemi Company Limited, and Gotion High-Tech, as emphasised by the TET report.

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