Pentagon accuses Alibaba, Baidu and BYD, three of China’s biggest companies, of supporting the Chinese military

The Pentagon accused some of China’s biggest companies including Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Baidu Inc. and BYD Co. of supporting the Chinese military, doubling down on an earlier decision to label crown jewels of the country’s corporate world as threats to US national security. The Defense Department announced the designations Monday in an update to a roster of companies that it has determined aid the People’s Liberation Army. The companies were included in a previous version that was posted briefly in February before being withdrawn minutes later without any explanation, sowing confusion about the Pentagon’s intentions. With the move, the US has now declared that three of China’s most prominent artificial intelligence champions — Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent Holdings Ltd. — are aiding the Asian country’s armed forces. Tencent was added to the list in 2025 and has been seeking its removal. The designation of BYD, meanwhile, targets China’s top electric-vehicle company. American depositary receipts in Alibaba fell 1% to $119.84 at 3:40 p.m. New York time. Those of Baidu were down 2.1% at $119.14. BYD’s receipts fell 0.7%. Read More: US Briefly Names Alibaba, Baidu as Firms Aiding China’s Military The newest version of the Pentagon’s so-called 1260H list also restored two Chinese memory chipmakers — ChangXin Memory Technologies Inc. and Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. — that had been previously designated by the Pentagon but were removed from the version that briefly appeared in February. While the list carries few immediate legal repercussions, the Pentagon is increasingly using it to restrict companies’ abilities to contract with the US military or to receive research funding. A 1260H designation also serves as a warning to US investors, and is widely considered a red flag that can precede more punitive trade restrictions. None of the companies immediately provided comment when contacted by Bloomberg News. Many have previously rejected US claims that they support the