The US has delayed plans to add Chinese AI firm DeepSeek and ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), China’s top memory chipmaker, along with more than 100 other companies, to the Commerce Department’s Entity List.

An interagency committee approved the moves last year, but the Trump administration has held off as it seeks to avoid escalating tensions with Beijing.

The Entity List is run by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security.

It requires licenses for exports of specified US items to listed foreign entities, and those licenses are likely to be denied.

DeepSeek drew global attention after launching a low-cost AI model in January 2025 that shook the technology world.

CXMT was also designated a Chinese military company by the Defense Department under the Biden administration.

That Pentagon designation is separate from the Commerce Department’s Entity List, which directly governs exports through its licensing requirements.

🔗 Source: Reuters

Recent DeepSeek developments