U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and U.S. Representative John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), Chairman of the House Select Committee on China, have formally requested an investigation into Autel Energy, a Chinese electric vehicle (EV) charging startup.
In a letter dated May 19, 2025, addressed to U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Department of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the lawmakers urged the departments to probe Autel Energy’s connections to its parent company, Autel Intelligent Technology Corp., Ltd., and the People’s Republic of China (PRC), citing significant national security concerns.
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The legislators are pushing for Autel Energy to be considered for addition to the Department of Commerce’s Entity List and the Department of Defense’s “Chinese military companies” list. They argue that Autel Energy’s operations could jeopardize U.S. consumer data and critical grid infrastructure.
A key concern highlighted in the letter is Autel Energy’s shared parentage with Autel Robotics, a Chinese drone manufacturer recently flagged by the U.S. government. Autel Robotics was added to the Commerce Department’s Entity List in June 2024 and the Pentagon’s list of Chinese military companies in January 2025 due to national security concerns.
“We are concerned that Autel Energy’s products pose many of the same risks to U.S. economic and national security as those manufactured by Autel Robotics and its parent company, both of which are openly affiliated with the CCP and People’s Liberation Army,” the lawmakers stated.
The letter details troubling findings from Congressional oversight regarding Autel Robotics, including its roots as a subsidiary of a company listed on one of China’s National Defense and Military Industry Hybrid Securities Investment Funds, its use of microchips from restricted Chinese tech companies ZTE and HiSilicon in drones marketed as “Made in USA,” operations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and leveraging state-backed subsidies.
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Blackburn and Moolenaar allege that Autel Energy is employing similar tactics to obscure its Chinese ties. “Autel Energy styles itself as Autel Intelligent Technology Corp. on its website but has otherwise taken steps to hide the company’s ties to its Chinese-controlled parent corporation through new investments in the U.S., where affiliation with a strategic ally of the PRC is deliberately deemphasized,” they wrote.
The company recently opened a U.S. assembly facility in North Carolina in October 2023, claiming its products are “Build America, Buy America” compliant and eligible for federal EV infrastructure support.
The lawmakers emphasized the potential for data harvesting and infrastructure vulnerability. “And much like Autel Robotics, Autel Energy products have the capacity to access and collect significant sensitive consumer data that could be used for nefarious purposes,” the letter warns.
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“These products are also connected to critical electrical infrastructure, enhancing the risks posed to American economic and national security.”
Senator Blackburn and Chairman Moolenaar concluded their letter by formally requesting the agencies investigate whether Autel Energy meets the criteria for designation on the aforementioned national security concern lists. They thanked the Secretaries for their attention to what they described as an “urgent matter” critical to national safety.
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