China said the U.S.'s decision to ban foreign-made humanoids "severely damages China-U.S. economic and trade stability." The country's commerce ministry threatened with countermeasures if the move is not taken back.
The U.S. announced the ban on Tuesday, saying "advanced robotic devices" can pose a national security risk.
China is by far the leader in the development of humanoid robots with an estimated market share of about 85 percent.
According to the FCC, an interagency body determined that devices could create supply chain vulnerabilities and were a cybersecurity risk that threatened American critical infrastructure.
"The lack of a secure U.S. supply chain for inverters and the continuous inflow of foreign-produced or controlled inverters and inverter components poses threats to U.S. economic and national security," the security assessment states.
"Inverters' remote connectivity introduces additional vulnerabilities which compound as inverter-based resources proliferate on the U.S. grid. These vulnerabilities could enable foreign firms to turn off the inverters or use them to collect and exfiltrate data, facilitate remote access and surveillance by foreign government actors, or be otherwise exploited through a cyberattack," it adds.
Similarly, the assessment warned that advanced robotic systems can create extensive vulnerabilities. Specifically, the assessment stated that advanced robotic devices collect data that hostile actors could use to surveil Americans and enhance the capabilities of foreign intelligence services. Another security risk involved the potential for someone to take control of the robots remotely and commandeer them.
"I am pleased that the FCC has now added foreign produced advanced robotics and power inverters to the FCC's Covered List," FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said. "The FCC will continue to do our part to secure America's critical supply chains and, with today's action, the FCC is acting in lock step with our national security agencies to do just that."
The restriction does not apply to people who already bought devices and it doesn't prevent retailers from selling items that the FCC previously authorized. Rather, the change imposes restrictions on new device models
CNBC noted that Chinese companies Agibot, Unitree and UBTech accounted for the three largest humanoid companies by installation market share in 2025. Robostore, a distributor of Chinese humanoid robots in North America, is expanding its U.S.-based capabilities, company CEO Teddy Haggerty told the outlet.
