India-Built Ati Robotics Sidesteps US China Robot Ban
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- FCC banned new models of Chinese-made humanoids and other advanced devices from US import over national security concerns last week, with Ati Robotics founder Saurabh Chandra predicting "quite a few people will be impacted."
- Ati Robotics operates several hundred robots at warehouses and factories with more than 50 customers; its first humanoid, designed to move heavy bins around, enters service later this year.
- Chandra's Bangalore-based R&D leverages India's EV two-wheeler and three-wheeler supply chain, adapting reliable, high-volume automotive-grade components for robotics at lower cost.
- Ati's 10,000-pound tugger is "really China-free" using US-based Ouster lidar, while the pallet mover has under 5 percent Chinese parts; the new humanoid still sources a Chinese harmonic drive and battery cells.
- Ati chose induction motors without permanent magnets over Chinese brushless motors, trading a bit of efficiency for supply-chain independence and larger battery capacity.
- Ati Robotics is building a new manufacturing facility in Madison Heights, Michigan, near Detroit, to eventually assemble robots currently built entirely in Bangalore.
- Chandra says the robotics industry is "in denial" about the ban, naming Tesla's Optimus and Figure as clear beneficiaries of non-Chinese or US-based robot production.
Why it matters: Chandra says the FCC ban will impact 'quite a few' robotics firms that rely on Chinese parts for humanoids and advanced devices. Ati's 10,000-pound tugger uses zero Chinese parts and its pallet mover under 5 percent—letting it keep serving US customers while domestic rivals Tesla's Optimus and Figure share that supply-chain independence.
