In today’s political and technology landscape, we sometimes wonder how Chinese company Lenovo manages to escape much of the scrutiny from U.S. officials that we’ve seen of late. The company, which owns Motorola’s ThinkPad brand and acquired IBM’s server business, has mostly stayed out of the line of fire because it doesn’t provide much in the way of critical systems. Perhaps companies using Lenovo servers would be considered critical, but the company doesn’t have much of a presence at the federal level, as was the case with Huawei.
When Huawei was banned in the United States in 2018, the main reason was that, together with ZTE, it became essential for the various systems in which its technology was implemented, especially telecommunications systems. The government said there were fears of sabotage of US networks. The ban came after years of scrutiny over Huawei, which was even mentioned in the 2012 House of Representatives report as a security threat. Meanwhile, Lenovo sells to consumers and businesses, but does not supply critical infrastructure used by the federal government.
In 2016, during the Obama administration, Pentagon staffers were warned against using Lenovo products in government. An internal report at the time expressed concerns that Lenovo was considering acquiring stakes in various companies in the United States to gain access to the country’s secrets and information related to the Department of Defense. A Congressional report released a few years earlier also claimed that Lenovo laptops were “tagging” or sending data back to a home base. This was after the State Department chose in 2006 to stop using Lenovo devices on government networks due to apparent ties to the Chinese government.
Millions were spent on Lenovo products despite government reluctance
None of the warnings or guidelines discussed above stopped what is now known as the War Department from purchasing and using Lenovo devices in 2025. According to data from USAsending.gov, $154,880 was spent on eight “high-performance workstations” from Lenovo, and $5,657.98 was spent on a Lenovo P16 G2 for the Defense Logistics Agency, detailed as ” Marine rescue and diving equipment.”
The State Department also spent $10,578 to purchase 10 Lenovo-branded “replacement” laptops “for (international) operations.” These are used in Costa Rica. The Trump-aligned nationalist and far-right group America First Policy Institute caused a stink about it in a November 2025 article. It is linked to various technologies purchased and used by government agencies directly linked to China.
However, the government’s habit of purchasing Lenovo equipment also includes the Biden administration. In 2022, $17 million was spent on the “Lenovo ThinkPad P50”, presumably as part of a massive upgrade for the workforce. Maybe now they should know who owns Chinese companies. In North Carolina, Lenovo currently owns the naming rights to the arena where the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes play, nicknamed the Lenovo Center, after taking over from PNC in 2024.
