Chinese Robotics Firm Unitree May Belong on BIS Entity List, Other Lists, Lawmakers Say
All 24 members of the House Select Committee on China urged the Trump administration May 6 to consider adding Chinese robotics company Unitree to the Bureau of Industry and Security's Entity List and the Pentagon's Section 1260H list of Chinese military companies.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
The committee also asked the Federal Communications Commission to consider placing Unitree on its Covered List to block the use of the company’s robots in U.S. telecommunications infrastructure.
In a letter to the Commerce and Defense departments and the FCC, the lawmakers said they’re concerned about Unitree’s ties to China’s military, police and other restricted entities, saying the company has sold robots to Beihang University, a school on the Entity List. They also worry that China could remotely use the firm’s quadrupedal robots to spy on Americans. Equipped with sensors and software, the robots already have been used in the U.S. by law enforcement agencies, correctional facilities and defense installations.
The Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) released a statement endorsing the letter.