By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - The Federal Communications Commission said on Thursday it has granted a waiver to Intel from its ban on some foreign-made advanced robotics to allow it to continue to use some vehicles critical to semiconductor production.
The FCC said it would grant a one-year waiver of its rules in order to prevent "potential disruptions in the availability of domestic semiconductor manufacturing services for Intel’s customers."
Intel in a petition last week said
the robotic devices are critical to its US semiconductor manufacturing. Without the waiver, Intel would not have been allowed to make software, firmware, and hardware changes for its "Automated Guided Vehicles" that it said could be classified by the agency as robots.
Intel told the FCC there is a lack of proven domestic alternatives that meet operational requirements and replacing the automated guided vehicles would take Intel years and could disrupt its manufacturing operations.
An FCC official said the waiver would allow Intel to make minor changes to existing models of vehicles and does not involve swapping out any US-made components for foreign-made components.
Intel said it appreciated the approval of its petition that "supports American manufacturing of leading-edge chips."
The vehicles are used to transport materials within Intel's semiconductor facilities and have been in operation for over two decades, the company said.
In July, the FCC barred imports of new Chinese robots and power inverters, seeking to protect the US AI buildout from national security threats and reshore key industries slated for explosive growth.
The FCC barred imports of new Chinese humanoid and quadruped robots, in addition to connected power inverters. The FCC has since granted some approvals to allow for continued specific robotic device imports.
Some analysts forecast broad adoption of humanoid robots, topped with AI-enabled "brains," in consumer and industrial arenas, while explosive data-center construction in the US will depend on reliable sources of inverters.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese and Bill Berkrot)
