FCC Exempts Lightberry's Lumi, Calling It the First Humanoid Robot Cleared After a Department of War Review
LUMI IS THE FIRST AND ONLY HUMANOID ROBOT APPROVED BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT 馃嚭馃嚫
Context
Since July, new foreign made robots cannot get FCC approval to be sold in the US, so a cleared path shows how humanoid makers can still reach American buyers.
In July 2026 the FCC added foreign produced advanced robotic devices, including humanoids, to its Covered List, which blocks new equipment authorizations needed to import or sell them. Makers can seek a Conditional Approval from the Department of War, which exempts a device from the list. On Oct 30 the FCC named Lightberry Holdings' Lumi Interactive mobile robots among the newly exempted devices.
Deep dive
The FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau released Public Notice DA 26-1181 on Oct 30, exempting several products from the Covered List after the Department of War granted them Conditional Approvals. The list includes Lightberry Holdings' Lumi Interactive mobile robots, alongside warehouse vehicles, forklifts and other robotic platforms from companies such as OMRON and ATI Motors.
The FCC describes a Conditional Approval as a specific determination by the Department of War that the devices do not pose risks to US national security. The exemption depends on each company keeping to the onshoring plan in its application and on continued vetting. False statements or a failure to follow the plan can end the approval.
Lightberry, based in San Francisco, says it is the first and so far only humanoid robot company to win this approval. It says it earned it with two commitments: replacing Lumi's sensors, onboard computer and software with its own, and building Lumi's body, head and hands in the US first, with the rest of the robot to follow.
The headline claim in the post, that Lumi is the only humanoid approved by the US government, comes from the company. The FCC list itself confirms the exemption, and no other humanoid maker appears on it so far.
What to expect next
Watch whether other humanoid makers, including US and Asian companies that rely on foreign parts, apply for and win similar approvals. Lightberry now has to deliver on its US manufacturing and software plans to keep the exemption. Also watch for Lumi sales and pricing in the US, and for any change to the FCC rules on foreign robots as the humanoid market grows.