Washington: Chinese-made vehicles could become “computers on wheels” capable of spying on Americans, crippling transport networks, and hollowing out the US auto industry, lawmakers and experts warned during a high-stakes Congressional hearing that cast China’s booming auto sector as both an economic and national security threat.
Opening a hearing titled “Trojan Horse: China’s Auto Threat to America,” House Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar said Beijing’s rise as the world’s largest auto exporter was not a market success but “a political project of the CCP,” built on massive subsidies, control over supply chains, and predatory practices that US and allied firms “cannot match.” He warned that modern vehicles packed with cameras, microphones, sensors and connectivity systems could function as “potential spy platforms with a kill switch inside.”
“Modern vehicles are digital eyes and ears on wheels,” Moolenaar said, cautioning that Chinese-built systems could allow Beijing to siphon sensitive data or even disable fleets during a crisis, blocking roads or disrupting logistics.
Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi said China had used a familiar playbook of forced joint ventures, intellectual property theft, overproduction and dumping to dominate the auto sector. He noted that China’s auto exports surged more than 300 percent between 2021 and 2024, while Chinese electric vehicles were often priced “below what it would even cost to make a car.”
“EVs are the future,” Krishnamoorthi said, adding that electric vehicles are projected to make up 60 percent of global new car sales by 2040. “The question before us now is this: who will own the EV market in 15 years?”
Elaine Dezenski, senior director at the Foundation for Defence of Democracies and a former US homeland security official, said China was flooding global markets with vehicles through “massive overcapacity” driven by the state, resulting in industrial dumping that “wipes out competitors and tilts the playing field before cars even reach the showroom.”
“This is not normal industrial production or competition,” Dezenski said, detailing practices that included forced technology transfer, price manipulation, forced labor, and strategic market cornering. She warned that small and medium-sized suppliers — the backbone of US auto manufacturing — were especially vulnerable.
Charles Parton, a former British diplomat and China expert, described vehicle connectivity systems as an urgent security risk, calling cellular modules “the gateway” to modern cars and other critical infrastructure. China already supplies about 70 per cent of these modules globally, he said.
“Why would China fight with America? Why not just turn you off?” Parton asked, warning that malware inserted through software updates could disable vehicles, cranes, pipelines, or payment systems, while vast streams of data could be harvested for surveillance.
Peter Ludwig, co-founder of automotive software firm Applied Intuition, said Chinese automakers were now producing sophisticated vehicles comparable in quality to Western models but sold for as little as $10,000, a result of long-term industrial policy, state subsidies, and supply chain dominance.
“Chinese vehicles pose the same kinds of risks in the physical world that TikTok represents in the digital world,” Ludwig said, warning that once such systems are widely deployed, “unwinding that dependence will be slow, costly, and politically difficult.”
Several lawmakers pressed witnesses on whether the US should bar Chinese automakers and key suppliers from the American market. Ludwig responded with a clear “yes,” saying restrictions aligned with the Commerce Department’s connected vehicle rules but needed to be strengthened.
The hearing also highlighted concerns about forced labor in China’s auto supply chains and the risk that Chinese firms will use Mexico as a backdoor to the US market through transshipment and investment.
China’s auto push comes amid broader tensions between Washington and Beijing over technology, trade, and national security. US officials have increasingly compared the risks posed by Chinese vehicles and components to earlier dependencies on Huawei telecom equipment, which later required costly “rip and replace” efforts.
For India, this Congressional debate is worth watching as New Delhi balances its own ambitions in electric mobility and manufacturing with concerns over Chinese dominance in batteries, critical minerals, and automotive components — sectors central to both economic growth and strategic autonomy.
(IANS)
