The US will put SenseTime, the Chinese artificial intelligence company that specialises in facial recognition software, on an investment blacklist on Friday, the same day that it prices its Hong Kong initial public offering.
The action against SenseTime, which Washington says enables human rights abuses against Muslim Uyghurs in Xinjiang, will be part of a package of sanctions against a number of countries to mark Human Rights Day, according to three people familiar with the decision.
The US Treasury will place SenseTime on a list of “Chinese military-industrial complex companies”. In June, President Joe Biden signed an executive order that barred Americans from investing in companies on the list, following a Trump administration policy intended to tackle national security threats.