US Drone Makers Wrestle To Break Free From Chinese language Components Dependency

The Pentagon’s push for hundreds of American-made drones to counter China‘s dominance has uncovered a harsh reality: U.S. drone producers are closely reliant on Chinese language elements, making a nationwide safety vulnerability (Observe: not a Knowledge Safety subject…) that’s proving tough to unravel. A latest Forbes article by David Denims highlights the technical, financial, and regulatory hurdles U.S. corporations face in constructing drones with out Chinese language components, as escalating commerce tensions and sanctions exacerbate the problem.

A Provide Chain Stranglehold

China controls almost 90% of the worldwide business drone market and manufactures most important drone elements, together with airframes, batteries, radios, cameras, and screens, based on Drone Business Insights. This dominance stems from many years of funding, environment friendly provide chains, and authorities subsidies, leaving U.S. producers years behind in creating comparable infrastructure.

“We’re virtually utterly reliant on our main adversary for them, and our means to make them,” mentioned Josh Steinman, former provide chain safety overseer on the Nationwide Safety Council.

The reliance is so pervasive that even high-profile demonstrations reveal the problem. Final month, Vice President J.D. Vance was photographed sporting Chinese language-made Skyzone drone show goggles at a U.S. Marines occasion in Quantico, Virginia. Main Hector Infante clarified the goggles weren’t military-issued and used just for viewing, however the incident underscores the problem of avoiding Chinese language components completely.

China’s willingness to weaponize its provide chain dominance provides urgency to the issue. In October 2024, Chinese language sanctions focused Skydio, the most important U.S. drone maker, reducing off its battery provide from Dongguan Poweramp Expertise Ltd. Skydio, which has raised over $850 million, admitted it wouldn’t safe new suppliers till spring 2025 and commenced rationing batteries “This motion makes clear that the Chinese language authorities will use provide chains as a weapon to advance their pursuits over ours,” Skydio said.

Different corporations, together with Anduril, Defend AI, and Neros, face comparable sanctions. Whereas some, like Defend AI, declare no affect attributable to minimal reliance on Chinese language components, others, like Neros, acknowledge difficulties. “Getting these elements has been tougher,” mentioned Neros CTO Olaf Hichwa, although he famous the sanctions are a “forcing perform” to eradicate Chinese language components.

The Pentagon’s Protection Innovation Unit (DIU) oversees a “Blue Record” of drones authorized for army use, requiring them to be freed from banned Chinese language elements like cameras and flight controllers beneath the Nationwide Protection Authorization Act (NDAA). Nevertheless, the method is a bottleneck, approving solely 23 of over 300 submissions in 2025. Firms like Darkhive and Brinc Drones confronted rejections with little suggestions, stifling progress.

“It’s simpler to get sanctioned by the [People’s Republic of China] than it’s to get on the Blue Record,” mentioned BRINC’s Andrew Cote.

DJI’s lobbying efforts, together with a lawsuit in opposition to the Protection Division, have to date blocked legislative bans, permitting it to proceed supplying U.S. prospects.

DroneXL’s Take

For DroneXL’s skilled and leisure pilots, the reliance on Chinese language components poses each sensible and strategic challenges. Whereas U.S. producers like Skydio and Neros are innovating, the fee and time required to construct a China-free provide chain imply increased costs and potential delays for finish customers. The Pentagon’s Replicator initiative, aiming to ship hundreds of drones by August 2025, is a step ahead, however its success hinges on overcoming bureaucratic hurdles and scaling home manufacturing. Pilots ought to brace for rising prices as tariffs and sanctions disrupt provide chains, whereas keeping track of rising U.S. and allied suppliers. The trail to self-sufficiency is lengthy, however the stakes—nationwide safety and trade competitiveness—demand daring motion.