According to the latest research report published by “Fortune” magazine headquartered in New York, China’s self-driving vehicles, also known as “robocars,” have been operating in California since 2017, covering 1.8 million miles, and have also been approved for testing in Texas and Arizona.
These vehicles can be equipped with cameras, microphones, GPS, LiDAR, radar, and artificial intelligence sensors for navigation and recording, including road terrain and driving conditions, to enable various autonomous driving applications. However, the question remains of what sensors they possess, what data they record, and who has access to it. Furthermore, who knows the potential military and intelligence dual-use aspects of this emerging technology?
The data collected could potentially be sent to China, violating the privacy rights of Americans. If the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) desires, based on CCP laws, they could have complete access to this data, including WiFi passwords, facial recognition, and tracking of dissidents fleeing China. From a espionage standpoint, the risks of robocars are particularly significant as they can be directed to surveil, record, and steal data in almost any location, including near US military bases or companies with confidential information.
Chinese citizens employed by US robocar companies, including three former employees of Apple, have been accused of stealing proprietary autonomous driving data. One individual has been convicted, but the sentence was only four months. This does not deter thieves from stealing data worth billions of dollars. These robocars allow Chinese companies to leverage US technology and data as a stepping stone to surpassing our companies. Chinese electric vehicle companies have brought back autonomous driving technology developed in Silicon Valley to China and expanded significantly on that basis.
Another major issue is the lack of reciprocity. We provide detailed road data, high-definition maps, and opportunities for Chinese robocar companies to test in the US for free. In contrast, American car companies in China do not receive reciprocal data, maps, and access. This gives Chinese car companies a competitive advantage over American ones in this growing market, making it nearly impossible for US self-driving vehicles to compete in China.
Tesla is the only American car company that comes close, yet it faces discrimination for not being able to directly access necessary data and develop it outside China. As a result, Chinese companies, like Baidu’s autonomous driving division, are leading Tesla by three to five years in Baidu’s home ground China, which is set to become the world’s largest autonomous driving car market in the future.
Notably, the number of robocars being tested by the CCP far exceeds that in the US. According to the China Society of Automotive Engineers headquartered in Beijing, by 2030, 20% of new cars sold in China will adopt autonomous driving technology, and an additional 70% will incorporate advanced driver assistance technology. This means by 2030, only 10% of new cars in China will be driven entirely by humans.
This trend clearly indicates that the US government has not taken sufficient measures to mitigate the risks of Chinese engineers and robocar companies operating in the US.
Fortunately, four members of the US House of Representatives have recognized this issue, including Representatives Tim Walberg (Republican, Michigan), Debbie Dingell (Democrat, Michigan), Bob Latta (Republican, Ohio), and Marc Veasey (Republican, Texas). On July 18, 2023, they jointly issued a press release and wrote to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, highlighting the enormous risks of giving Chinese robocar companies a blank check.
In the press release, the representatives wrote, “China is racing ahead, setting global standards, building supply chains, and deploying technology.” They continued, “The massive data collected by these (robocars) could give the CCP an unprecedented advantage in accessing the US. The CCP government has already used big data analysis domestically to identify dissidents, and we are concerned these strategies could be deployed domestically and abroad.”
Since the House’s letter, CNBC news channel based in New Jersey and Nikkei Asia Review from Tokyo have reported on Chinese robocar testing in the US. However, over the past year, the US government has not taken significant action to protect Americans and our companies.
Fortunately, in May of this year, Secretary Raimondo stated that regulations on sending data to China by US connected vehicles may be implemented as early as this fall. Objectively speaking, this may be too little, too late. So far, the CCP is posing unprecedented challenges to us in the robocar field.
This article was written by Anders Corr, who holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Political Science from Yale University and a Ph.D. in Government Management from Harvard University. He is the publisher of the Journal of Political Risk and President of Corr Analytics Inc., with research spanning North America, Europe, and Asia. His recent works include “The Concentration of Power: Institutionalization, Hierarchy, and Hegemony” (2021) and “Great Powers, Grand Strategies: the New Game in the South China Sea” (2018).