U.S. Lawmakers Urge Ban on Chinese Memory Chips, Warn of National Security Risks

U.S. lawmakers John Moolenaar and George Whitesides have formally requested Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to ban imports of memory chips from Chinese manufacturers CXMT and YMTC, citing unacceptable risks to national, economic, and supply chain security. The lawmakers argue that purchases from these companies, which are linked to the Chinese military, indirectly support China's military modernization and could weaken Western production capacity. They also urge the U.S. to coordinate with allies including Japan, South Korea, and the EU to prevent Chinese memory chips from entering allied supply chains. The request comes as Apple and other American tech firms seek to source memory from CXMT amid a global DRAM supply shortage driven by AI infrastructure expansion. CXMT is already on the Pentagon's Chinese Military Companies list, while YMTC is on the Commerce Department's Entity List, but current restrictions do not fully prohibit U.S. companies from buying their products.