The industrial robot industry recorded 5.1 per cent
growth in 2025, following a 2 per cent contraction in 2024, according to
Interact Analysis. The market is now forecast to grow steadily to 2030, at an
average annual rate of 6.7 per cent, rising from 549,555 units in 2025 to
761,303 units in 2030.
The latest industrial robots report from the market
intelligence specialist suggests that improving market sentiment, reshoring
efforts in the US, and strong demand from the semiconductor and electronics
sectors are among the main drivers of growth.
Material handling and assembly are expected to be the
key applications driving expansion, with 2025-30 compound annual growth rates
of 7.0 per cent and 6.9 per cent, respectively, as demand rises for efficient
logistics and precise manufacturing-line assembly.
Strong APAC demand, weak automotive sector
constrain EMEA growth
Analysts project that APAC will record the strongest
shipment growth among major regions, with an average annual growth rate of 7.1
per cent from 2025-30. This compares with 6.2 per cent for the Americas and 4.7
per cent for EMEA.
Global shipment growth will be driven by sectors such as
logistics, new energy and semiconductors. However, a weak automotive sector has
weighed on industrial robot growth in EMEA. Interact Analysis analysts suggest
this reflects poor investment due to high interest rates in the region,
resulting in fewer new automation projects.
This has contributed to a 4.9 per cent contraction in
EMEA shipments in 2025 and affected sales of high-end welding and heavy-payload
robots. Despite this, automotive will remain the largest sector for industrial
robots, with global shipments increasing from 171,556 units in 2025 to 223,864
units in 2030.
At a country level, India is expected to see the highest
growth, at 12.5 per cent over the forecast period. In contrast, Germany is
projected to achieve a compound growth rate of 3.7 per cent from 2025-30 and is
predicted to record a 0.3 per cent contraction in industrial robot shipments in
2026.
Samantha Mou, Senior Analyst at Interact Analysis, says,
“Continued growth is expected in 2026, supported by improving market sentiment,
reshoring and automation demand in the US, and strong demand in the
semiconductor and electronics sectors. Over the next five years, the market is
projected to grow steadily, driven by robot adoption across more manufacturing
processes and emerging industries.
“Revenue growth is expected to lag behind unit growth
due to competition and declining average prices. However, price erosion is
anticipated to slow in 2026 as robot manufacturers’ cost pressures increase
amid rising oil prices.”
Collaborative robots remain the fastest-growing
segment
While articulated robots will remain the largest
robotics segment during the forecast period, their growth will be outpaced by
several other robot types. Interact Analysis projects collaborative robots to
be the fastest-growing segment, with an average annual shipment growth rate of
17.4 per cent between 2025 and 2030, compared with 5.0 per cent for articulated
robots.
SCARA robots are also projected to outpace articulated robots, with a
compound annual growth rate of 5.9 per cent between 2025 and 2030, driven by
robust demand from the electronics and semiconductor industries.