Dear MEL Topic Readers,
China’s humanoid robots have been taking over the global market. Now
the US is banning them
Thanks to the world’s largest domestic market, China leads global electric
vehicle production and sales by a large margin, supplying roughly 60% of all
electric vehicles worldwide. When it comes to global humanoid production, China
generated 90% of the global output last year, with industry giants such as Unitree
Robotics, AgiBot, and UBTECH Robotics, which are leading innovation,
production, and market development. The US administration is concerned about
the extensive vulnerabilities and risks posed by these Chinese robots to national
security, and has banned imports of new humanoid and four-legged robots from
foreign manufacturers. Indeed, internet-connected robots could pose
data privacy risks and cybersecurity vulnerabilities, such as remote hijacking
and surveillance. Imagine foreign-made security robots patrolling a high-tech
laboratory send proprietary information to a foreign intelligence agency. In
the meantime, the US cannot benefit from using the world’s most advanced, mass-produced
Chinese robots. Can the US develop technologies and build a supply chain to
produce competitive robots while China is already selling its robots to other
markets?
Read the article and learn about another trade restriction by the US
administration.
