Though it forged its own deal with China-based CATL to license lithium-iron phosphate battery technology for future EVs, Ford and its CEO – Jim Farley – have long recognized Chinese cars as a big threat to the company’s business, if and when they arrive in the U.S. as expected. This is largely due to the fact that China has heavily subsidized and regulated its automotive industry to influence it to build more EVs, which – coupled with the fact that most raw materials used in the construction of EV batteries come from that country – has resulted in extremely affordable all-electric models, unlike the ones coming from American-based manufacturers. This is precisely why the Biden Administration has been mulling increasing tariffs and imposing various other measures on imported Chinese cars, but now, it seems as if the president himself is also concerned about potential national security threats stemming from those vehicle, too.
“China is determined to dominate the future of the auto market, including by using unfair practices,” President Joe Biden said in a statement. “China’s policies could flood our market with its vehicles, posing risks to our national security. I’m not going to let that happen on my watch. Most cars these days are ‘connected’ – they are like smart phones on wheels. These cars are connected to our phones, to navigation systems, to critical infrastructure, and to the companies that made them. Connected vehicles from China could collect sensitive data about our citizens and our infrastructure and send this data back to the People’s Republic of China. These vehicles could be remotely accessed or disabled.”
As a result of these concerns, Biden noted that he has directed the “Secretary of Commerce to conduct an investigation into connected vehicles with technology from countries of concern and to take action to respond to the risks.” Biden also noted that in China, that country already has similar regulations regarding imported automobiles from manufacturers outside of that country as well. A couple of years ago, this included banning Tesla models from parking at airports and government buildings over concerns that the cameras in those vehicles could be used in nefarious ways.
“China imposes restrictions on American autos and other foreign autos operating in China,” Biden said. “Why should connected vehicles from China be allowed to operate in our country without safeguards?
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