House Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI), together with U.S. Senator Rick Scott (R-FL), House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford (R-AR), have led a group of lawmakers in urging the Pentagon to add Deepseek, Gotion, Unitree, Wuxi, and 13 other companies to its list of Chinese military companies. The request is aimed at clarifying these companies' links to the Chinese military and ensuring that the Department of Defense avoids contracts with them.
“We applaud recent actions taken by the Department, including the addition of Tencent to the 1260H list in January, as well as reports that an October 7 letter from Deputy Secretary of War Stephen Feinberg informed the Armed Services Committees that Alibaba, Baidu, and BYD should be added to the list of companies that aid the PRC’s military…The firms listed below represent the next logical tranche of military-civil fusion contributors whose designation under Section 1260H would directly support Congress’s intent that U.S. taxpayer funds not underwrite PRC military-industrial and internal-security or intelligence capabilities,” wrote the lawmakers.
Other signatories include Chairman Rob Wittman from the House Armed Services Committee's Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee; Chairman Bill Huizenga from the House Committee on Foreign Affairs' South and Central Asia Subcommittee; Chairman Dusty Johnson from the Committee on Agriculture's Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Subcommittee; Chairman Darin LaHood from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence's NSA and Cyber Subcommittee; and Chairman Andy Ogles from the Committee on Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection Subcommittee.
The letter outlines concerns about several specific companies:
- DeepSeek: According to a senior State Department official cited by Reuters, DeepSeek has supported China's military and intelligence operations. The company reportedly appears in over 150 procurement records for entities within China's defense sector. It is also alleged to have continued access to advanced Nvidia GPUs despite U.S. restrictions and has attempted to circumvent export controls using shell companies in Southeast Asia.
- Gotion High-Tech: In 2016, Gotion High-Tech formed a joint venture focused on power-battery research with China Aerospace Wanyuan International (Group) Co., Ltd., investing in projects serving both civilian and military applications. The company’s leadership has included individuals with strong ties to China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
- Unitree Robotics: During a joint exercise between China and Cambodia in 2024, PLA forces used a rifle-equipped robot dog developed by Unitree for urban combat drills. Unitree operates out of Hangzhou High-Tech Zone—an area described as dedicated to “military-civil fusion”—and receives significant state investment.
- WuXi AppTec, WuXi Biologics, WuXi XDC: These firms’ management committees have included representatives from PLA medical institutions. They have received funding designed specifically for supporting military production enterprises and participate in national drug-development efforts involving PLA medical institutes.
The letter also lists GenScript Group, Tiandy Technologies, Livox, LeiShen, Robosense, CloudMinds, Hui Si Kaiwu, Xiaomi Corporation, BOE Technology Group, Tianma Microelectronics, Hua Hong Semiconductor, Shennan Circuit Company Limited, and Kingsemi Company Limited as candidates for inclusion.
Lawmakers argue that designating these companies under Section 1260H aligns with Congressional intent to prevent U.S. taxpayer funds from supporting China's military-industrial complex or its security apparatus.
Read the full letter here.
