Rainbow Robotics files first Korean bid to beat US robot curbs

The Samsung subsidiary halted RB-Y1 shipments to the US in August; the way back runs through the Department of War.

Rainbow Robotics has filed for conditional approval from the US Department of War covering its RB-Y1 mobile humanoid robot, becoming the first South Korean robotics company to seek an exemption from Washington's new restrictions on foreign-made robots.

The filing follows a shipping freeze. The Samsung Electronics subsidiary told the Korea Herald in September that RB-Y1 units scheduled for August and September could not be shipped to the United States, with some near-term impact on sales expected. The company said at the time that it expected to receive approval.

The rule behind the freeze took effect on July 28, when the Federal Communications Commission added foreign-produced advanced robotic devices — humanoids, quadrupeds and other mobile robots — to its Covered List. New models can no longer receive the equipment authorization required for US import, marketing or sale unless the Department of War grants conditional approval. Models authorized before the change are unaffected.

Whether a robot counts as foreign-produced comes down to the federal Buy American test: the device must be manufactured in the United States, and domestic components must exceed 65 percent of total component cost through 2028, rising to 75 percent from 2029.

The measure is aimed at Chinese technology, but it applies by place of manufacture rather than nationality — which puts Korean makers in the same net. About 20 South Korean robotics companies are affected. Rainbow is preparing a US manufacturing and investment plan for the approval process, though it says it has not decided to build a factory there.

There is precedent for the exemption working. California floor-cleaning robot maker Matic received conditional approval on October 2 for its robot and charging dock, and the FCC removed those two models from the Covered List.