Biden admin’s final rule banning Chinese connected cars also bars robotaxi testing on U.S. roads

The US Department of Commerce made an announcement final rule That will be on Tuesday Ban the sale or importation of connected vehicles from China and Russia due to national security concerns. The rule would also prevent Chinese car companies, such as WeRide and Pony AI, from testing self-driving cars on US roads.

“China is trying to dominate the future of the auto industry, but vehicles connected to software and hardware systems linked to foreign adversaries could expose the American people to the risk of their sensitive data being misused or intercepted by malicious actors,” National Economic Adviser Lele Brainard said in a statement. The ruling ensures “a safer American auto industry.”

The software ban will go into effect in the 2027 model year and the hardware ban will go into effect in 2029 The department said the sanctions would not cover Chinese software created before the new rules took effect, unless a Chinese company had access to the software

The final rule also includes exemptions for vehicles heavier than 10,000 pounds, meaning China’s BYD can continue assembling electric buses in California.

There are a few Chinese autonomous vehicle companies with active permits to test in California. Baidu-owned Apollo Autonomous Driving and WeRide are all allowed to test AVs without safety drivers Pony AI, which recently joined the public market, is allowed to test with a security driver. In the company’s IPO materials, The pony mentions a slight risk Unable to continue very limited robotaxi testing in the US due to the impending ban, these operations generated “less than 1%” [its] Total revenue in 2023 and in the six months ending June 30, 2024.

A spokesperson for the California Department of Motor Vehicles previously told TechCrunch that the agency will follow the Commerce Department’s lead in enforcing a ban on Chinese connected vehicle technology. TechCrunch has reached out to find out if the DMV will revoke those permits when the final ruling is announced