FCC Clears First Humanoid Under Foreign Robot Ban as Lightberry, OMRON and Four Others Win Exemptions

Three months after Washington effectively shut the door on new foreign-made robots, it has started letting a few back in. On October 30, the Federal Communications Commission released Public Notice DA 26-1181, exempting robots from six companies from its Covered List after the Department of War granted them Conditional Approvals. One of them, San Francisco startup Lightberry, says its Lumi is the first and so far only humanoid robot to be cleared. For any business that builds, imports or buys robots, the notice is the first real look at what it now takes to sell a robot in the United States.

What the FCC Actually Approved

According to a summary of the notice from FCCID.io, the FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau exempted these robotics products:

• Lightberry Holdings: Lumi Interactive mobile robots, a humanoid line.
• OMRON: the LD-150 and LD-300 robotic platforms.
• ATI Motors: Sherpa 3K, Sherpa 10K, FlexFork 1500, FlexFork 3000 and Sherpa Mecha platforms.
• ARAPL RaaS: autonomous pallet trucks and counterbalance forklifts.
• SunScout and Swap Robotics Canada: SunScout’s robotic platforms and mobile energy systems, and Swap’s V7 robot.

The same notice also cleared a drone from Voliro and power inverters from Ingeteam. The FCC treats each Conditional Approval as “a specific determination” by the Department of War that the devices do not pose risks to U.S. national security.

How the Foreign Robot Ban Works

The backstory matters. As TAO Media explains, the FCC added foreign-produced advanced robotic devices to its Covered List on July 28, 2026, after a national-security determination by an executive-branch interagency body. The category covers humanoids, autonomous mobile robots and quadrupeds that meet the government’s technical definition.

Equipment on the list cannot get new FCC equipment authorization, which most electronic devices need before they can be imported, marketed or sold in the U.S. Models that were already authorized can still be sold, and owners can keep using robots they bought legally. The pressure falls on new models, which is exactly where the industry is moving fastest.

Importantly, “foreign-produced” is not about where a company is headquartered. TAO reports that the rule follows domestic-end-product standards: manufacturing in the United States, with domestic components above 65% of total component cost for deliveries from 2024 through 2028, rising to 75% from 2029. A San Francisco startup can still be selling a foreign-produced robot.

Lightberry’s Playbook: Replace the Brain, Move the Factory

Lightberry’s announcement spells out the two commitments behind its approval. First, the company replaces the robot’s sensors, onboard computer and software with its own. Second, it is starting U.S. manufacturing with Lumi’s body, head and hands, with the rest of the robot to follow. The approval is tied to that plan and to ongoing vetting.

“A humanoid robot works right next to people, with cameras and microphones, so you need to know exactly what’s running inside it,” co-founder and CEO Ali Attar said in the release.

The detail worth noticing is the hardware underneath. Lightberry describes Lumi as compatible with the Unitree G1, a popular Chinese-made research humanoid, and TAO reports that Lumi combines a G1 base with Lightberry’s own hardware and software. Lumi stands about 4 feet 2 inches tall, runs on an Nvidia Jetson Thor computer per TAO, and is aimed at front-of-house work such as guiding visitors, answering questions and entertaining crowds. Founder Edition units cost $39,990, according to the company.

In other words, the government has signaled that a robot with foreign roots can qualify if a trusted company controls everything that sees, hears and computes, and commits to building more of it at home.

The Strings Attached

These are conditional passes, not permanent ones. The FCC notice says exemptions depend on each company’s continued compliance with the onshoring plan in its application and on updated vetting of its products. Failing to follow the plan, or a false statement in the application, can end the approval and put the equipment back on the Covered List. Approvals without a stated end date stay in force as long as the company keeps its onshoring commitments.

The exemptions also land amid broader trade pressure. On October 28, President Trump signed a Section 232 proclamation covering robotics, industrial machinery and their parts, directing trade negotiations after the Commerce Department found that imports of those goods threaten national security, as ExplorRobo summarized. No tariffs have been imposed yet.

Why It Matters for Business

• There is now a template for market access. Robot makers that want to keep selling new models in the U.S. can see what passed: control of the sensor and software stack, plus a credible domestic manufacturing plan. Expect more vendors to restructure around that formula.
• Warehouse automation is first in line. Most of the approved products are pallet trucks, forklifts and mobile platforms. That is good news for logistics and manufacturing operators whose automation roadmaps depend on those categories.
• Buyers should check compliance, not just specs. Because an exemption can be revoked, companies buying fleets should ask vendors about FCC status, onshoring progress and what happens to support and spare parts if an approval is pulled.
• Costs will rise before they fall. Swapping out sensors and computers and building U.S. production lines costs money. Some of that will show up in robot prices, at least until domestic supply chains reach scale.
• Onshoring creates openings. U.S. makers of sensors, compute modules, actuators and robot software stand to win business from companies trying to clear the domestic-content bar.

The Bottom Line

The July ban looked like a wall. The October 30 notice shows it is closer to a gate with a checklist: own the software and sensors, build at home, and keep proving it. Six companies are through so far, and only one humanoid. How quickly the Department of War works through the next wave of applications will shape which robots U.S. companies can actually buy in 2027.

Sources: FCC Public Notice DA 26-1181; FCCID.io; Lightberry, October 30, 2026; TAO, October 30, 2026; HumanoidBeat; ExplorRobo.

Edited by Coron @QUE.COM
Website: https://QUE.COM Intelligence
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