FCC bans dashcam and transmitter over HiSilicon chip

The Federal Communications Commission has halted the sale of two consumer devices in the United States. This marks the first time the agency has banned products based solely on the internal chips they contain, rather than the brand or model name.

The blocked items are a dashboard camera and a wireless video transmitter. Both devices include a HiSilicon Smart Vision system on a chip. HiSilicon is a subsidiary of Huawei, which appears on the FCC's Covered List of entities considered a risk to US national security.

The specific component is the Hi3516CV610 UHD Smart Vision SoC. It is designed for surveillance and camera products and includes WiFi, Ethernet, and video encoding hardware. The chip also contains an Arm Cortex-A7 processor and a neural processing unit for AI functions.

The FCC focused on the neural processing unit. The agency classifies this as a device containing logic-bearing smart components made by entities on the Covered List. According to the chip's data sheet, the Intelligent Video Engine runs on this unit. It uses a built-in multimodal large model and transformer feature acceleration to track subjects such as pets, faces, and parcels across video frames.

The commission argues that this AI capability could be used to survey US citizens and log faces for foreign surveillance. The new rule closes a loophole that allowed rebranded products with parts from restricted Chinese manufacturers to remain on the market. By targeting the silicon itself, the ban applies regardless of the product label.

Huawei has faced previous scrutiny in the US. The company used shell companies to deceive TSMC into manufacturing AI chips despite US export restrictions. That episode contributed to other product bans in the United States.

The FCC's authority extends to wired and wireless communications under the Communications Act of 1934. The agency directed the ban on the two specific devices to prevent their marketing and sale within the country.