The United States has moved to block new imports of foreign-made robots and power converters. Officials fear that a hostile power could spy through them or disable them remotely. The order never mentions China. There is no need for that.
On Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission added two categories to its covered list, First reported by CNBC. One of these is “advanced robotic devices”, ie mobile robots such as humanoids and quadrupeds. Another is connected power inverters, solar panels, batteries and boxes that connect the data center to the grid.
It is a difficult commercial block to get on the Closed List. The equipment on it may not receive FCC approval. Almost every electronic device needs this authorization before entering the US market. This is the same lever that the agency pulls DJI drones and Huawei network kit.
A word that the ban refrains from
Read the FCC filing and something stands out. It restricts foreign-made robots and inverters “regardless of origin”. Politics points to Beijing. The text refers to all.
The gap is intentional. The framework allows Washington to portray China as a threat. The word pushes every manufacturer to the same choice: build in America or face safety. An administration official told CNBC that the goal is to protect the US AI infrastructure and shore up the firms. “Economic security is national security,” he said.
💜 of EU technology
The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise founder Boris and some questionable AI art. Free in your inbox every week. Register now!
There is an exit door. The manufacturer can apply for “Conditional Approval” and if they clear the check, they can continue selling. The War Department controls the robots; Inverters are managed by National Security. In principle, any manufacturer can pass through it, including Chinese firms. In practice, it checks the Pentagon for robots to reach America’s shelves.
Why robots and transformers together
The pairing seems strange until you read the security box. Both devices are on the network and both respond to remote signals.
Network converters phone home for monitoring and software updates. The interagency ruling warns that the same channel could allow a foreign firm to “disable inverters or use them to collect and extract data.” More solar and battery capacity on the grid means more remote control boxes.
Robots carry the same risk for their legs. The robot designation warns that networked machines “collect data that could be used by malicious actors to track Americans” or allow an attacker to “control robots remotely.” Unitree is the emblem of the category. The Chinese firm’s humanoids and quadrupeds have moved up a notch from lab demos pending public listingand The Pentagon has already flagged company.
What actually changes
Less so than the headlines suggest, at least at first. The block only hits new device models that seek permission. It does not address robots or transducers that have already been purchased, models that have already been approved, or anything that the federal government buys and uses.
So it’s an import port, not a recall. Its bite grows over time as newer models are frozen while older approved models remain on sale. The FCC used the same phased approach on drones and consumer routers. CISA now requires companies to check suppliers against the list.
The more difficult question is whether the US can fill the gap. China dominates both supply chains. The same rare earth and battery drown it out made it difficult to ban drones apply here. It is quick to prevent imports. Building local industries to replace them is slow, and hardening a network with weak points is slow The attackers are already investigating.
For now, Washington has drawn the easiest line: at the border, on new-generation vehicles. Whether factories comply or not is the test that matters. A list won’t solve it.
