Failing to take the robotics race seriously means watching Beijing set the rules of the automated economy, and risks leaving American power to rust.

China commands two-thirds of global robotics patents. Its flagship robotics company is shipping humanoid robots at one-tenth the cost, and ten times the volume, of American alternatives. These are not the distant indicators that some commentators cite arguing that America “might fall behind” in a future robotics competition with China. They are urgent signs that Beijing is already succeeding in its quest to control the physical infrastructure of the automated economy. Time is running out to adjust course.

Why Robotics Matters to US National Security

Robotics is not merely about improving manufacturing efficiency or making another billion off of consumer gadgets. It stands to reshape the future architecture of economic and military power. Banks and market research groups project the market for the machines and related services will surge to $7 trillion by 2050, and envision a world populated by hundreds of millions of human-like robots. Demographic decline and major strides in AI are further accelerating demand for “embodied intelligence.” As it faces a dearth of physical laborers and the dawn of intelligence too cheap to meter, the key question now facing the United States is how to build a capable and modern manufacturing base. The answer lies in mobile platforms capable of rendering services in physical space.

China has figured this out. President Xi Jinping has made robotics a central pillar of the country’s economic growth model in the 2020s. China’s 14th Five-Year Plan lists “robotics and smart manufacturing” as a cornerstone of its industrial innovation, with China aiming to be a global innovation hub by 2025 and a world leader by 2035. Beijing is well on the way to achieving this objective; between 2013 and 2022, Chinese universities added over 7,500 new engineering majors, with nearly 100 focused specifically on robotics. China’s academic output is already surpassing American contributions at major robotics and computer vision conferences. Moreover, Chinese institutions hold more than 190,000 robot-related patents, two-thirds of the global total. The country is already home to more than half of the top humanoid robotics companies.

The economics of this competition are even more striking. Founded in 2016, China’s robotics champion, Unitree, now sells its G1 humanoid robot for $16,000—about one-tenth the cost of comparable Western systems. Their quadrupeds, or “robot dogs,” are even more dominant in price-to-performance. To be clear, these are not low-quality Chinese knockoffs of Western products. They are robots that function well, at prices that make Western alternatives look like luxury goods no customer can afford to buy at scale. This is why China shipped 10 times as many robots as Boston Dynamics to customers in 100 countries last year.

The United States Must Not Cede Robotics Dominance to China

We have seen this movie before. During the 21st century, China has used a handful of tools—massive state support, relentless cost reduction, and flooding global markets before competitors can react—to crush its Western competitors in a range of industries: 5G telecommunications, solar cells, batteries, drones, and electric vehicles, among others. Each time, we told ourselves the next technology would be different. Each time, we were wrong.

Crucially, robotics is not just another consumer market to lose. Unitree’s mass-produced platforms could flood global markets, capturing critical data streams that serve as a flywheel for progress in machine learning and autonomy. For the People’s Liberation Army, such access translates directly into military potential in areas like urban warfare, intelligence gathering, and autonomous combat systems. It is notable that dozens of Unitree robot dogs have already been deployed in Ukraine.

Robotics is also the point where China’s commercial and military ambitions converge. The factories that make delivery robots can just as easily make bomb-carrying ones. The engineers building computer vision systems to navigate warehouses are also building the future of weapons targeting software. PLA analysts describe humanoid robots as “the key link in robots replacing humans in ‘intelligentized’ warfare.” They understand that commercial leadership in robotics is, in effect, a form of military strength.

The Trump administration has a narrow window to act before Chinese robotics companies gain an unassailable foothold in global markets. The American response must match the scale of the threat.

First, the United States should immediately restrict Unitree’s operations on American soil. The company poses a clear risk to US national security. There is ample evidence to suggest a close relationship between Unitree and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, to say nothing of the potential for intrusive data collection and legal requirements set forth by China’s National Intelligence Law. While some US lawmakers have proposed adding Unitree to the Department of Commerce’s Entity List, or pursuing restrictions through the FCC’s Covered List, the most straightforward approach available to the Trump administration would be to invoke the ICTS Executive Order—the same tool used to target TikTok and Internet-connected electric vehicles—which allows Commerce to prohibit transactions involving Unitree’s products and services.

Second, make it easier to build robots in America. That will necessarily include importing large numbers of certain critical robotics and manufacturing equipment components on a short timeframe—including high-precision actuators from Japan and South Korea. Only a handful of companies in the world currently produce essential robotics components like precision actuators and reducers, charging high price points and with exceptionally long backorders. Ongoing trade negotiations with Tokyo and Seoul may offer a window to lock-in favorable purchase commitments or provide tariff exemptions for specific pieces of equipment that will aid in America’s own manufacturing revival.

Third, accelerate private investment in the US robotics industry. President Trump has already secured more than $2 trillion in private manufacturing commitments through direct engagement with CEOs. A natural next step could be to increase the leverage cap for Small Business Investment Companies, freeing more capital for robotics startups and advanced manufacturing ventures looking to build downstream supply chains. The Small Business Administration allows some investors to borrow government dollars at discounted rates, but the amount of leverage typically offered in these deals—capped at three times starting capital—is rarely enough to build a standalone factory in America.

Fourth, expand pathways for global robotics talent to build in America. At the same time the administration takes steps to secure the US research enterprise from foreign influence, President Trump could expand the use of the International Entrepreneur Rule to incentivize entrepreneurship directly within US borders. Current immigration law makes it difficult for foreign entrepreneurs to launch robotics companies in America, pushing talent toward more welcoming jurisdictions. A dedicated visa category for founders with proven track records or significant funding would channel global innovation toward American soil rather than allowing it to flow to competitors.

Finally, establish “advanced manufacturing zones” with real incentives. American robotics companies are pushing for a national robotics strategy, including a central government robotics office, to promote the industry. As part of the effort, Commerce Secretary Lutnick could designate advanced manufacturing zones with expedited federal permitting, liability shields for testing autonomous systems, and a 10-year tax holiday for robotics production. States are already competing for these facilities, and federal coordination could determine whether they succeed or fail.

The race for robotics supremacy is not some distant science-fiction contest. It is happening now, in real time, with consequences that will echo for generations.

The United States still has the tools to compete in this contest. It has world-class universities, deep capital markets, and an entrepreneurial culture that remains the envy of the world. But that edge is eroding as Beijing mobilizes its industrial base at wartime speed. Failing to take the robotics race seriously means watching Beijing set the rules of the automated economy—and risks leaving American power to rust.