✅ You can sever China from spacecraft, but you absolutely cannot sever it from humanoid robots. It’s understandable that SpaceX has decided to completely remove Chinese nationals and components from its supply chain—after all, rocket and satellite technologies are directly tied to national security. The quantities involved are relatively small, and since these are specialized equipment, strict control is feasible. But humanoid robots are an entirely different story. Just look at Tesla’s Optimus: most of the core “body” components—actuators, harmonic drives, roller screws, hollow cup motors, and rare-earth magnets—are sourced from China. Some analyses suggest that removing Chinese components would nearly triple the cost. To meet target pricing, the Chinese supply chain is effectively indispensable. The domain where SpaceX can prioritize security above all else is fundamentally different from the domain where mass production, precision mechanical components, and extreme cost competition are paramount. You can cut China out of spaceflight—but disentangling it from humanoid robots is nearly impossible. That’s the reality today.