US lawmakers warn of backdoor in Chinese Unitree robots used by police, prisons
US congressional lawmakers warned that Unitree Robotics, a Chinese company, has installed a hidden backdoor called "CloudSail" in robots deployed across American law enforcement, prisons, and military installations, allowing remote access to systems and data transmission to servers in China. The committee urged the federal government to investigate the company's connections to the Chinese military and restrict its access to US government contracts and critical infrastructure.
What happened
On May 5, 2025, the US House Special Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party sent a letter to the US Department of Defense, Department of Commerce, and Federal Communications Commission, warning that Unitree Robotics, a Chinese company with ties to the People's Liberation Army, had installed a hidden backdoor called 'CloudSail' in robots deployed across American institutions.
According to the committee letter, the CloudSail backdoor allows remote access to robot systems with API key credentials, enabling operators to remotely control robots, access video feeds, and gain system access through SSH. The committee stated that user data from these robots is stored in China and subject to Chinese government intelligence and cybersecurity laws.
Unitree robots are in use by US prisons, police departments, military bases, and universities including MIT, Stanford, Yale, and Carnegie Mellon. The committee cited commercial plans to deploy 100 robots in state prison systems with potential expansion to 1,000 units.
Reported impact
The committee characterized the robots as 'Trojan horses with cameras' and described Unitree as presenting an 'increasingly serious national security threat' to the United States.
The robots use speech recognition technology from iFlytek, a Chinese company subject to US sanctions for large-scale surveillance and human rights violations.
Index analysis
The committee noted that Unitree has benefited from exemptions in the US and has a history of participation in Chinese military-civilian fusion programs and Chinese government investment.
The letter stated that Unitree robots have appeared in joint military exercises between the Chinese military and Cambodian military, with the B1 model equipped with assault rifles, despite the company claiming to be a civilian robotics manufacturer.
Governance controls
The committee urged that Unitree be added to the US Department of Defense's List 1260H of Chinese military-industrial enterprises, the US Commerce Department's Covered List, and the Federal Communications Commission's Entity List, which would restrict the company's access to US government contracts, funding, and critical infrastructure including telecommunications.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.