FCC bans new foreign robots and power inverters over security risks

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission announced on Tuesday that imports of new foreign-made humanoid robots, robot dogs and power inverters are being banned on national-security grounds. The measure largely affects Chinese suppliers. About 15,000 humanoid robots were shipped worldwide in 2025, while inverters are already common in US solar and renewable-energy installations.

Why connected hardware is under scrutiny

The FCC argues that overseas-made devices could be remotely controlled, used for surveillance by foreign governments or enlisted in cyberattacks. Washington has repeatedly accused Beijing of stealing commercial data and preparing access to US infrastructure for potential military use, including in a conflict over Taiwan.

The concern extends beyond proven technical vulnerabilities. US officials maintain that Chinese ownership may enable Beijing to compel manufacturers to collect information or interfere with deployed products. The United States possesses comparable legal powers over companies within its own jurisdiction.

Scope of the restrictions

China holds the dominant share of the global humanoid-robot market, with its two largest manufacturers supplying most of the 2025 shipment volume. Humanoids remain an early-stage category, but power inverters are widely deployed to connect household solar panels and other renewable systems to the electricity grid.

Existing equipment in homes and other installations is unaffected. The government may also grant an exception when it determines that a particular device presents no threat to US national security.

China will use “all measures necessary” to protect Chinese businesses, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.

The action follows restrictions affecting TikTok, foreign-made consumer routers and surveillance-equipment vendors Hikvision and Dahua. It also arrives before a planned September state visit to Washington by Chinese President Xi Jinping for talks with President Donald Trump.

For businesses, hardware provenance is becoming a continuity issue rather than a routine compliance detail. Procurement teams should assess remote-access architecture, update mechanisms, supplier jurisdiction and import eligibility before committing critical operations to connected equipment that may later become unavailable.