Ma Huateng, founder of Tencent, is drawing renewed attention after the Pentagon labeled his company a “Chinese military company.” Ma, who has served on Yale University’s Beijing advisory board since 2015, has also donated millions to several Ivy League institutions.
Tencent, which owns the popular app WeChat, has been accused of supporting Chinese government censorship and surveillance. The Pentagon’s designation highlights Tencent’s role in China’s military and artificial intelligence development, marking the company as a potential threat to U.S. national security.
Ma’s role at Yale has included facilitating partnerships between the university and Chinese organizations. The Yale Center Beijing has hosted events with Tencent executives and Chinese officials to discuss topics like AI policy. Critics warn these activities could deepen ties between American institutions and entities linked to the Chinese Communist Party.
#FirstpostAmerica: The Pentagon has named Chinese social media and gaming tech giant Tencent as a company that works with the Chinese military. Tencent is best known for making the do-it-all app WeChat and the gaming app PUBG. @EKH2016 tells you more pic.twitter.com/PE5ajl61no
— Firstpost (@firstpost) January 7, 2025
The US Department of Defense has classified Tencent, owners of Riot and investors in several other game studios, as a Chinese Military company. https://t.co/gcCpfNvR2H pic.twitter.com/Qd4ADGI2yo
— IGN (@IGN) January 7, 2025
Ma’s charitable foundation has also provided substantial funding to other elite universities. Princeton and MIT have each received $5 million in donations, while Columbia University was awarded $900,000. Critics argue these financial contributions could allow Chinese interests to influence academic research and policymaking.
Problem is all these Chinese companies are heavily tied in with the CCP. Tencent's founder served on the Peoples' Congress, and has made anti-free speech statements. So you're basically just trading woke communism for old school communism. pic.twitter.com/qBKKKrJgSe
— MMNTech (@mmntech) December 9, 2024
https://twitter.com/FirstSquawk/status/1876289941359251699s
Craig Singleton, a senior China fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, described Tencent as a “national security risk.” He emphasized the company’s potential to compromise U.S. sectors through its investments and ties to Chinese intelligence agencies.
People forget that China doesn't have a military. Instead, the Communist Party has an armed wing, the PLA, which defends the Party. Context to understand why the Pentagon is justified adding Tencent and CATL to its China military (1260H list). https://t.co/fZZCCS8jmT
— Isaac Stone Fish (@isaacstonefish) January 7, 2025
He is very tactful.
"Pony Ma Huateng, the founder and CEO of Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings, published a rare commentary in an official newspaper on Thursday, praising Beijing’s recent economic policies for supporting the private sector."https://t.co/bEVOyZqlwE— Yuzhen (Jennifer) Xie 谢予桢 (@JenniferXie12) December 12, 2024
The Pentagon’s designation has amplified concerns about foreign influence on American institutions. As scrutiny of Ma and Tencent grows, Yale and other Ivy League schools are likely to face questions about their reliance on foreign funding and partnerships.
