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America’s Robot Ambitions Are Running Into a Made-in-China Reality

TThe US is trying to build the future of robotics — just not the parts that go inside it. Washington has declared humanoid robots a national security priority, but China already dominates the supply chain, the manufacturing base, and increasingly the market. Whoever leads in physical AI leads in the next industrial revolution.

Drone déjà vu: The drone industry cautionary tale (opens in a new tab) looms large here. More than a decade ago, US startups were building drones on shoestring budgets until Chinese drone maker DJI arrived with cheaper, camera-stable models and pushed much of the young industry aside. Washington doesn’t want robotics to suffer the same fate. The FCC now requires new advanced robots sold in the US to be assembled domestically with at least 65% domestic content, rising to 75% by 2029.

• Nearly 90% (opens in a new tab) of humanoid robots sold globally in 2025 were Chinese-made, with Unitree alone shipping 5.5K+ units, far beyond US startup volumes.
• Unitree shares surged 460% (opens in a new tab) on their Shanghai debut, giving the robot maker a ~$51B valuation on just $250M in annual revenue.

America's Robot Startups Are Caught in the Middle

US founders say meeting the 65% domestic-content threshold is nearly impossible right now. Teddy Haggerty, Unitree’s former North American distributor turned robotics founder believes (opens in a new tab) that cutting China out entirely just makes a more expensive product without a viable alternative. Employees at some Silicon Valley firms have even flown robot parts from China to the US in their suitcases to keep development moving.

• Persona AI sources parts from Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and Italy, but says it still can’t meet FCC domestic-content rules without more US support.
• Florida-based Jabil builds Apptronik’s humanoid robots in Mexico, suggesting the near-term supply chain could span North America rather than the US alone.

The carrot-and-stick problem: The FCC rules protect US robot makers from cheaper Chinese rivals, but the suppliers needed to meet them don’t exist at scale yet. With humanoid robotics still young, the US has a narrow window to build that supply chain without stifling innovation and repeating the drone industry’s collapse. As Michael Perry warned, “You need to provide the carrot as well as the stick. Right now, you're only providing the stick.”

Trump Puts 50% Canada Tariffs on Hold as Deal Talks Advance

Canada now has some reprieve from Trump’s tariff hammer. Trump paused the 50% tariffs (opens in a new tab) on $20B of Canadian imports just hours before they were set to take effect, giving both sides three days to finalize a deal. The levies would have covered roughly 5% of Canada’s annual US exports, pushing the average tariff rate on Canadian goods from 4.68% to 6.27%.

• The tariffs cover goods ranging (opens in a new tab) from hockey sticks and electronics to plastics and building materials, a relatively narrow but politically sensitive slice of trade.
• Canada’s Chamber of Commerce warned the tariffs could disrupt cross-border commerce and threaten 13M American jobs tied to USMCA trade.

USMCA hangs over: Canadian PM Mark Carney confirmed “substantial progress (opens in a new tab)” but said work remains, with autos still a key sticking point. A deal could also clear the way for broader USMCA negotiations after the pact missed its July renewal, triggering annual reviews until it expires in 2036. Capital Economics warned that failure could revive tit-for-tat tariffs, slow growth, and weaken business confidence across North America.