U.S. Government Bans Foreign-Made Robots

Recently we’ve covered a number of robots, ranging from creepy to nifty:UBTECH’s U1 companion robots.Unitree’s crazy off-road AS2-W.Hyundai’s parking robots.AGIBOT’s Expedition A3 packing itself away for transport.The Swiss LEVA cargo-carrying dog-bot.Unitree’s GD-01 mecha-bot.As of today, they all have one thing in common: They’re all banned by the United States government. This week the Federal Communications Commission issued a ban on foreign-made “advanced robotic devices,” citing security concerns:”The networked capabilities of advanced robotic systems create extensive vulnerabilities and vectors for attacks that can manipulate the data and physical operation of the advanced robotic system. Relying on foreign-produced advanced robotic devices presents unacceptable supply chain and cybersecurity vulnerabilities . . . Advanced robotic devices collect data that could be leveraged by malign actors to surveil Americans, enhance the capabilities of foreign intelligence services, or to remotely commandeer the robots.”They’ve also banned foreign-made (networked) power inverters, as they could potentially provide a backdoor into the power grid for cyberwarriors.The ban is effective immediately, but those who already own such components or robots are exempt.