A federal judge rejected the efforts of drone maker DJI to get off the Pentagon list of Chinese military companies.
US District Judge Paul Friedman ruled on Friday that DOD provided “substantial evidence” that the DJI “contributes to China’s defense industrial bases.”
Pointing to the use of modified DJI drones in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Friedman wrote:
At the same time, Judge Friedman rejected some of the other rationales of DOD for the listing.
Other government agencies, including the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Finance, placed DJI on similar lists before being added to the DOD list in 2022.
When DJI filed the lawsuit last year, the company said it was “not owned or controlled by the Chinese military,” and “DOD itself allows DJI to make consumer and commercial drones rather than military drones.”
The lawsuit also said that the company is “suffering from continued financial and reputational harm” as a result of its listing.
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TechCrunch contacted DJI for comment. The company told Reuters it was considering legal options, telling Judge Friedman that its decision was “based on a single basis that applies to many companies that have never been listed.”
DJI faces other US legal hurdles, including a potential ban on sales that begins in December, unless the National Security Agency determines that its drone “subjects an unacceptable risk to U.S. national security.”
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