Trump administration bans Chinese hardware with eye on AI race
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Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday announced it would ban imports of Chinese robots and power inverters, citing national security threats.
Why it matters: The action targeting China comes as the race between Beijing and Washington to dominate AI heats up.
How it works: Power inverters, a key part of the electricity infrastructure needed to power AI data centers, and new humanoid and quadruped robots will be placed on a list of equipment deemed by the administration to pose "unacceptable risk to the national security of the U.S. or the safety and security of U.S. persons."
- The administration determined that these foreign-produced products, regardless of the manufacturer's nationality, pose that level of risk.
- In practice, the move is expected to hit China the hardest.
- Some foreign manufacturers would still be able to sell their products in the U.S. if they receive conditional approval from officials.
Threat level: The administration argues that advanced robots' networked capabilities could be exploited to spy on Americans, bolster foreign intelligence capabilities or be remotely commandeered by malicious actors.
- It also says that the growing role of power inverters in the U.S. electrical grid has created new vulnerabilities to cyberattacks and supply chain manipulation.
- Last year, two researchers found China-based manufacturer Unitree Robotics pre-installed an apparent backdoor on its popular Go1 robot dogs that allowed anyone to surveil customers around the world.
The big picture: The number of new robots deployed each year has more than doubled from a decade ago, now topping 500,000 units globally.
- But China is ahead on the robot revolution with more than 2 million industrial robots inside its factories — five times more than the U.S.
What we're watching: The Trump administration is also grappling with how to deal with software from China, as open-source models spark concerns among some policymakers.
