Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

What We're Watching

Biden wants to ban Chinese software from American roads

A BYD EV Dolphin Mini is displayed as the Chinese electric-vehicle producer announces the launch of the low-cost EV in Mexico City, Mexico, on Feb. 28, 2024. ​

A BYD EV Dolphin Mini is displayed as the Chinese electric-vehicle producer announces the launch of the low-cost EV in Mexico City, Mexico, on Feb. 28, 2024.

REUTERS/Toya Sarno Jordan/File Photo
Make us preferred on Google
The growing number of “smart” cars on American roads may need to get their brainpower from somewhere that’s not China (or Russia). The Biden administration on Monday proposed a ban on Chinese and Russian software and components for electric vehicles in America.

The measure is framed as a national security move: Washington is worried that Chinese software in EVs could enable Beijing to suck up data on US drivers and critical infrastructure or to manipulate vehicles on the road.

But it’s also a trade move: Retrofitting Chinese vehicles with approved tech would be impractical, so the proposal would effectively ban Chinese-made EVs altogether. So far, there are very few on American roads, but US industry is worried about competition from Beijing, which has already made huge inroads in Europe, stoking trade tensions there.

Last month, Washington slapped a 100% tariff on Chinese-made EVs and components.

What happens now? A 30-day public review period will be followed by the Commerce Department writing up the final text, hoping to have it implemented by the White House before Biden leaves office.

The shortcut: The economic and technology competition between the US and China is increasingly blurring the lines between national security and commerce.

More For You

A person casts a vote at a polling station during Zambia's general elections, including a presidential election, in Lusaka, Zambia.

A person casts a vote at a polling station during Zambia's general elections, including a presidential election, in Lusaka, Zambia, August 13, 2026.

REUTERS/Jean Mandela
Zambians want their slice of the copper piePolls closed in Zambia’s presidential election on Thursday as voters in one of Africa’s most stable democracies weighed whether the country’s economic turnaround has actually affected their wallets. President Hakainde Hichilema, who is seeking a second term, has overseen a successful debt restructuring, [...]
Nearly 5,000 protesters took part in a march against illegal immigration in Pretoria.

June 30, 2026 , Pretoria, South Africa: Nearly 5,000 protesters took part in a march against illegal immigration in Pretoria. The demonstrations were reportedly organized by more than 20 anti-migrant organizations and civil society groups, including the March and March movement.

© Manash Das/ZUMA Press Wire
South Africa bills other nations for deportationsSouth Africa is asking other African countries to reimburse them for the costs of deporting their citizens, after spending nearly $18 million on a massive deportation campaign. In recent months, the government has deported or helped other nations repatriate more than 80,000 migrants as it responds [...]
Oil tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz, December 21, 2018.

Oil tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz, December 21, 2018.

REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
The Strait escape Iran refused again on Tuesday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz unless the US meets its demands, flexing its leverage over the world’s most important artery for oil and gas shipping. But now, that leverage is prompting a rethink of global shipping routes. Saudi Arabia, one of the top oil producers in the world, plans to increase [...]
Residents dig through the debris of a collapsed building after an earthquake.

Residents dig through the debris of a collapsed building after an earthquake, in Cali, Colombia August 10, 2026.

REUTERS/Juan Pablo Arbelaez
Earthquake rocks Colombia days into new president’s termA 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck Colombia yesterday – at least 160 people have died, though officials expect the toll to rise as rescue efforts continue. The quake’s epicenter was in the Chocó region – one of Colombia’s poorest areas that has also been wracked with clashes in recent years [...]