Chinese memory-chip manufacturer China Xiangtai Memory Technologies (CXMT) has filed a lawsuit in U.S. federal court seeking removal from a Pentagon blacklist that lists companies alleged to support the Chinese military. Bloomberg reported that the defendants in the case include U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
CXMT says it develops and manufactures memory chips solely for civilian and commercial use and therefore was placed on the list without justification. The company stated that since being added to the list in January 2025 it has suffered ongoing business and reputational harm.
Stakes and company background
CXMT has become the world’s fourth-largest DRAM producer and, by market capitalization, surpassed Tencent to become one of China’s most valuable publicly traded companies. The firm is headquartered in Hefei and was founded by Chu Ji-ming, who returned to China after time in the United States. CXMT has reportedly been in talks with Apple to supply memory chips for devices destined for the Chinese market.
Although the Pentagon’s 1260H designation does not in itself carry immediate heavy legal consequences, the department has increasingly used the blacklist to restrict listed companies’ access to U.S. defense contracts and research funding. The designation also serves as a warning to American investors and, according to analysts, can foreshadow more severe trade restrictions.
Political and market implications
News of CXMT’s possible supply relationship with Apple drew attention from U.S. lawmakers; some senators publicly urged Apple not to rely on Chinese suppliers. CXMT represents a major Chinese alternative among international memory-chip suppliers and is viewed as a symbol of China’s push for technological self-sufficiency.
The company has said it is working on high-bandwidth memory (HBM) — used in accelerators for artificial intelligence — but did not provide details about those efforts in its Friday report.
Precedents
This is not the first Chinese company to challenge a Pentagon blacklist entry in court; Alibaba previously pursued a similar legal route. CXMT’s lawsuit aims to have the company formally removed from the January 2025 list on the grounds that the designation is unfounded.
(The cover image is illustrative. An AI assistant contributed to preparing this article; our journalist edited and verified the final content.)
