US lawmakers urge ban on Chinese memory chips from CXMT, YMTC over security risks

As Apple and other American companies seek to source memory chips from China-based CXMT and YMTC amid severe supply constraints, U.S. lawmakers are calling for a ban on imports of Chinese memory chips, according to the Financial Times.

Lawmakers' Concerns

Republican Representative John Moolenaar, chair of the U.S. House China Committee, and Democratic Congressman George Whitesides have sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urging the administration to:

• Prevent U.S. companies from purchasing semiconductors from businesses on the Pentagon's Chinese Military Companies blacklist or the Commerce Department's Entity List
• Add CXMT to the Entity List
• Impose additional restrictions on YMTC

"Dependence on Chinese memory manufacturers creates an unacceptable risk for U.S. national security, economic security, and supply chain security," the lawmakers wrote.

Industry Context

Apple has been seeking approval from the Trump administration to source memory from CXMT amid a global DRAM supply crisis driven by rapid AI infrastructure expansion. Meanwhile, Corsair, Patriot Memory, and other branded memory module and SSD suppliers have already been using DRAM from CXMT and 3D NAND from Yangtze Memory for some time.

"We are alarmed that Apple and other U.S. tech companies seek to purchase memory from Chinese semiconductor manufacturers, including those with ties to the Chinese military," the lawmakers stated.

Current Regulatory Status

• CXMT (DRAM manufacturer) is already on the Pentagon's Chinese Military Companies list
• YMTC (3D NAND producer) is already on the Department of Commerce's Entity List

Their inclusion on these lists does not outright prohibit American companies like Apple from purchasing their products, but it carries significant political risk.

Strategic Concerns

Technically, U.S. companies could buy chips from CXMT and YMTC for products destined for China or other markets, while continuing to use memory from traditional suppliers for U.S.-bound products. To prevent this, Moolenaar and Whitesides are urging the U.S. government to coordinate with Japan, South Korea, and the EU to stop CXMT and YMTC from exploiting the current supply shortage to embed themselves in allied supply chains.

The lawmakers argue that purchases from Chinese memory manufacturers could indirectly support technologies applicable to China's military.

"Leading Chinese memory manufacturers are all closely intertwined with the Chinese military; thus, every memory purchase by a U.S. company will directly subsidize the People’s Liberation Army's development of this critical dual-use technology," the letter stresses.

Potential Long-Term Impact

Moolenaar and Whitesides warn that CXMT and YMTC could replicate China's strategy in solar, steel, telecom, and EV markets: using state subsidies to undercut foreign rivals, weaken their investments, and ultimately exploit the resulting dependence for strategic leverage. They believe that using Chinese memory now could permanently weaken Western production capacity and leave the West strategically dependent on China for a critical component of AI infrastructure.