Drones Modern Flying News

Chinese Drone Clones Accused of Skating U.S. Federal Bans

According to lawmakers, China’s DJI is using other companies to sell near-identical versions of its drones, which are banned within many federal agencies.

Jack Daleo

Wednesday, August 28, 2024 at 05:09 PM ET

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Edited By: tccjeremy

Anzu’s Raptor drone bears all the hallmarks of DJI’s Mavic 3, save for its green paint job. [Courtesy: Anzu Robotics]

Key Takeaways:

U.S. lawmakers allege that Chinese drone manufacturer DJI is circumventing U.S. restrictions by using companies like Anzu Robotics (U.S.) and Cogito Tech (Hong Kong) as "fronts" to sell its drone technology.
Independent analysis and lawmaker investigations suggest Anzu's Raptor T drone and Cogito's Specta series are essentially "clones" or "white-labeled" versions of DJI products, heavily reliant on DJI hardware and software.
Lawmakers express strong suspicion that DJI's licensing agreements with these firms are a deliberate strategy to bypass federal bans and impending consumer-level restrictions, given national security and data privacy concerns tied to Chinese drones.
The House Select Committee is demanding detailed information from Anzu Robotics and urging the Commerce Department to implement measures preventing such "white-labeling" attempts to uphold U.S. security policies.

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According to American lawmakers, Chinese drone manufacturers are getting creative to circumvent restrictions on the technology’s sale and use in the U.S.

On Tuesday, members of the U.S. House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) alleged that U.S.-based Anzu Robotics and Hong Kong-based Cogito Tech are actually fronts for China’s DJI.

Jack Daleo

Jack is a staff writer covering advanced air mobility, including everything from drones to unmanned aircraft systems to space travel—and a whole lot more. He spent close to two years reporting on drone delivery for FreightWaves, covering the biggest news and developments in the space and connecting with industry executives and experts. Jack is also a basketball aficionado, a frequent traveler and a lover of all things logistics.