New FCC Ban Is Coming For Your Robot Vacuum Cleaners Right Now

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is at it again. After its recent targeting of Chinese-made drones and routers, the FCC has updated its Covered List of banned devices to include a new category of "advanced robotic devices." While the rule covers humanoids and quadrupeds, it goes a lot further than that, as some of the best robot vacuum cleaners fall under the new ban, too, according to a report from The Verge.

The new category covers just about any software-controlled autonomous robots that weigh more than 4.4 pounds including its dock, can sense its environment, and connects to a wireless network. In addition to household robot vacuums, this also includes everything from robot lawnmowers to sidewalk delivery bots and even warehouse robots. This doesn't mean the robot vacuum sitting in your closet is suddenly illegal or that you need to get rid of it. It just means that retailers won't be able to continue to sell models that aren't approved.

This particular ruling only affects newer models going forward, and just like the FCC's router ban, those companies could always get approval to keep selling. Beyond robot vacuums, the FCC is also currently looking at targeting burner phones and adding in other restrictions across the board. So, while the router ban might have started this recent string of developments, it's likely the robot ban is the last that we'll see out of the current administration.

There are a number of reasons why the FCC is making a play against Chinese-made robots, and a lot of it comes down to overall concerns for the safety and security of American homes. This is the same reason that we saw the FCC ban certain routers and DJI drones. With robot vacuums specifically, we have seen some interesting issues popping up in the past, including a big incident where a man was able to hack thousands of DJI robot vacuums and access data like home layouts and more.

The tricky thing here, though, is that the FCC isn't just targeting companies like DJI that had poor security. It's actually focusing on everything that Chinese tech touches, and some of the top robovac brands, like Roborock and Ecovacs, are based in China. Even Roomba, which started as an American name in the market, has actually transitioned to being owned by a former China-based manufacturer. One analyst even told The Verge that non-Chinese brands of robot vacuums are such a small part of the market, that they aren't even worth tracking, and added that Matic, a robovac fully assembled in California, doesn't source enough of its components from the U.S. to clear the bar that this new ban sets. So, while the focus is on robots that include Chinese components, it appears to affect the entire industry as it exists at this moment in time.