Chinese chipmaker CXMT sues Pentagon over ‘Chinese military company’ designation

China's leading memory chipmaker, ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), has filed a federal lawsuit against the Pentagon on Friday, August 28th, in protest of being added to a list of companies deemed to be aiding Beijing's military. The lawsuit argues that CXMT is not linked to the Chinese military and manufactures DRAM chips for civilian and commercial applications only.

The US Defense Department declined to comment on the ongoing legal proceedings. CXMT's challenge to the designation, which originated in January 2025, stems from the harm it has suffered due to reputational damage and potential government contracting restrictions. The lawsuit claims the Pentagon's decision was arbitrary, lacked supporting evidence, and violated CXMT's due-process rights.

The company had previously filed a notice of intent to remove itself from the list but had it withdrawn shortly thereafter. CXMT spent over a year providing the Pentagon with information to contest the designation, yet the listing was reinstated without a clear explanation. CXMT's legal action echoes that of other Chinese technology firms, such as Alibaba and Xiaomi, who also sued the US government over similar designations.