The United States Department of Defense has revised the list of entities that meet the conditions for designation as "Chinese military companies," adding several companies from the Asian giant. Among them are major technology companies such as Alibaba, Baidu, and Tencent, along with electric vehicle manufacturers like BYD and NIO.
The notice of update to the registry, submitted to the United States Federal Register dated June 5, 2026, for dissemination this Wednesday, raises the total number of Chinese entities included to 188, compared to the 134 listed in the previous revision of the so-called 1260H list, compiled under the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act.
This legislation requires the U.S. Department of Defense to identify and publish annually, until December 31, 2030, a list of "Chinese military companies," adding or removing companies at least annually.
Thus, the Under Secretary of Defense has concluded that the identified entities meet the criteria to be classified as "Chinese military companies," as they are engaged in providing commercial services, manufacturing, production, or export activities, and operate directly or indirectly in U.S. territory.
Within the broad group of Chinese companies incorporated in the latest update of the 1260H list are technology platforms such as Alibaba Group Holding Limited, Baidu, and Tencent Holdings Limited, in addition to Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), Robosense Technology, and SenseTime Group.
The list also includes automobile manufacturers BYD Company Limited and NIO, along with battery producer Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL).
U.S. authorities specify that entities included in the 1260H list can request reconsideration of their inclusion. To do so, they must submit an application with a detailed description and evidence supporting why the entity should be removed from the registry, along with additional information, such as arguments and evidence demonstrating that there is insufficient basis for its continued inclusion or that the circumstances that led to its inclusion no longer exist.
At the same time, the US Department of Defense has decided that a dozen Chinese companies previously included in the list must be removed from the latest version of Section 1260H. Among those affected are Anhui Sun Create Electronics, China International Information Services, China National Chemical Engineering, China Traffic Construction USA, CNOOC China Limited (CNOOC China), CNOOC International Trading (CNOOC International Trading), COSCO SHIPPING Finance, Costar Group, GLARUN Technology, and Taiji Computer.