DJI is the latest Chinese company to be facing a Tik-Tok-style ban in the US – and the world's leading drone maker has told us in no uncertain terms what it thinks about a new US bill that could potentially ground its drones in the country.
A DJI spokesperson exclusively told us: "The bill sets a dangerous precedent for allowing baseless allegations and xenophobic fears to drive public policy decisions that could negatively impact public safety and the U.S. economy".
The reason for those public safety claims are because DJI drones are widely used in the US and worldwide for many non-commercial purposes, including helping first responders at land and sea.
The DJI spokesperson added: "Our drones are used by federal agencies, local law enforcement, and emergency response teams to keep communities safe. They have spawned entire industries of small businesses – from real estate to agriculture, transportation and beyond – who rely on access to DJI drone technology to support their businesses."
Of course, DJI isn't the only drone maker in the US, but it is still by far the most popular. So why is the Countering CCP Drones Act, a US bill that was recently passed unanimously by the House Energy and Commerce Committee, so keen to ground DJI's drones?
The familiar concern for those who've been following TikTok's similar issues is that "DJI presents an unacceptable security risk”, according to one of the bill’s sponsors, Representative Elise Stefanik of New York. Another is that the US wants to foster a "competitive… drone industry”, as Representative John Moolenaar of Michigan put it.
But DJI told us that it adamantly refutes the security concerns. Its spokesperson told us: "DJI’s drones are the most innovative, easy to use and affordable of any on the market today. We created the market for ready-to-fly civilian and commercial drones almost two decades ago and have invested heavily in robust safety and security protections as well as expanded user privacy controls for our products".
Whether or not these arguments are enough to stem a growing chorus in Washington calling for an FCC ban of DJI drones remains to be seen. The legislation will now progress to a floor vote in the House of Representatives over the next couple of months, and potentially then onto the Senate and US president.
What does this mean for DJI drones?
This new legislative threat for DJI drones in the US is far more serious than the one it faced in 2020, when it was placed on the same trade blacklist that Huawei found itself on in 2019.
Back then, the US Department of Commerce's decision didn't ban DJI from selling its drones in the US – instead, it restricted DJI's access to US technology. As DJI told us back then: "DJI is disappointed in the U.S. Department of Commerce's decision. Customers in America can continue to buy and use DJI products normally."
But DJI's fiery new statements reflect the seriousness of the new Countering CCP Drones Act. It had already stated its position in a lengthy blog post, but it's now seemingly going on an all-out attack to defend itself against legislation that could be bad news for both DJI and US drone fans.
If the act is passed, DJI drones would go on an FCC list that bans communications hardware or services that "pose a national security risk from entering US networks". In other words, the sale of DJI drones could get a blanket ban in the US, even for consumers. A potential workaround is DJI licensing its tech to other hardware companies, as it has done recently with Anzu Robotics.
It's not yet clear what this means for those who have already bought a DJI drone in the US. In the case of the Huawei ban in 2019, phones bought prior to the ban continued to operate as normal and receive security updates. But the ban blocked Huawei's future access to Android updates and services, which naturally had a big impact on Huawei's launches in the US.
So while it's possible that existing DJI drones would continue to work and receive updates in the US if the Countering CCP Drones Act is passed, it would still have big knock-on effects in the country and worldwide – and that would be a big shame for drone fans everywhere.
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