US Holds Off Blacklisting DeepSeek, CXMT, 100+ Chinese Firms

The U.S. government has reportedly paused adding Chinese AI startup DeepSeek, memory chipmaker CXMT, and over 100 other firms to a trade blacklist. This decision, aimed at avoiding escalating tensions with Beijing, comes despite an interagency committee's approval for their inclusion on the Commerce Department's Entity List in 2025. Sources familiar with the matter indicate the Trump administration has refrained from implementing these restrictions. The firms, including DeepSeek and CXMT, were previously flagged as national security risks by the interagency committee. The Commerce Department's Entity List restricts U.S. companies from exporting certain technologies to listed entities without a license. This marks the first public report of the committee's 2025 approval and the subsequent hold on the blacklisting.