FCC Adds Foreign-Produced Humanoid Robots to Its Covered List

The definition matters more than the headline. The list now covers any "advanced robotic device" that isn't a "domestic end product" under federal Buy American rules: a mobile robot (humanoids are named), heavier than 4.4 lb, with a sensor, a network link of at least 200 kbps and software that controls navigation or movement. The FCC says the entry is set by where a robot is made, not by who makes it, so it isn't limited to China. Covered equipment can't receive the FCC equipment authorization that most electronics need before they can be imported, marketed or sold in the US. Models authorized before July 28 may still be marketed, imported and used, according to Wiley, and a separate FCC notice lets them keep receiving software and firmware updates until at least January 1, 2029. For a new foreign-produced model, the only way onto the US market is a Conditional Approval from the Department of War.

For companion buyers in the US, this lands hardest on the Chinese walking machines. The UBTech U1 walks, watches through head-mounted cameras and connects over Wi-Fi, which puts it inside the definition: a U1 model without an earlier FCC authorization now needs a Department of War exemption before it can get one. DroidUp's Moya, a prototype shown walking with eye-mounted cameras, would face the same test if it ships with a network connection.