The US Federal Communications Commission has banned new imports of a wide range of foreign-made robots, citing cybersecurity risks first identified in devices made by Chinese firms. Announced on 28 July, the rule adds "foreign-produced advanced robotic devices" to the FCC's Covered List of technologies deemed a threat to US national security, following direction from a White House-convened interagency national security body. The move will hit Chinese manufacturers hardest, including Unitree's humanoid robots and vacuum-cleaner makers such as Roborock, but it also applies more broadly to robots made in allied nations including Japan, South Korea and Germany.

The ban covers mobile devices weighing over 4.4 pounds that can move autonomously or under remote control, sense their environment, connect via networks such as Bluetooth, and run onboard or cloud-based AI or software. It only blocks new, previously unauthorised models going forward, so consumers and businesses can keep buying and using existing approved robots. Exemptions include trains, drones (already banned separately in December 2025), underwater vehicles, road-going "connected vehicles" such as robotaxis, FDA-regulated medical devices and mobility aids, and fixed industrial robot arms, while the Department of Defense retains discretion to exempt specific foreign robots it deems safe.