Global economies are investing in robotics to benefit both industry and society. However, government research and development (R&D) initiatives are employing various approaches. World Robotics R&D Initiatives 2025, released by the International Federation of Robotics, examines governmental funding strategies across Asia, Europe, and the Americas.
“The 4th edition of the World Robotics R&D Programs addresses recent funding advancements, with updates for 2024,” states Prof. Dr. Jong-Oh Park, Vice Chairman of the IFR Research Committee and Executive Board member. “Thirteen countries are included in the list, with Singapore and Canada appearing for the first time in this edition.”
Overview of Robotics Research and Development initiatives: China, Japan, Korea, EU, Germany, USA
In China, the development of the robotics industry is governed by the “14th Five-Year Plan,” which extends until 2025. The initiative, released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) in Beijing in December 2021, aims to enhance innovation.
The latest statistical yearbook “World Robotics” from IFR indicates that China achieved a robot density of 470 units per 10,000 workers in manufacturing, placing the nation third globally in 2023. China made its debut in the top 10 in 2019. It has succeeded in doubling its robot density in just four years.
In Japan, the “New Robot Strategy” seeks to establish the nation as the leading global center for robot innovation. Essential sectors continue to be the same, such as manufacturing, healthcare, and agriculture. The “Moonshot Research and Development Program,” initiated in 2020, is set to continue until 2050 with a financial allocation of USD 440 million (JPY 25 billion). Ten Moonshot objectives have been established in the domains of society, environment, and economy to attain ‘human well-being’. These encompass challenges confronting society in the future, like an aging population and climate change. The initiative encourages the development of AI robots that independently learn, adjust to their surroundings, enhance their intelligence, and work alongside people.
According to the statistical yearbook “World Robotics” by IFR, Japan is the world´s number one industrial robot manufacturer. The country globally ranked in fifth place with 419 units per 10,000 workers installed.
In Korea, the government announced the “4th Basic Plan on Intelligent Robots” in January 2024 which will run until 2028. An investment of USD 128 million (KRW 180 billion) supports the development of the robotics industry as a core industry for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, as well as innovation in manufacturing and services. Key targets are to improve technology, manpower and corporate competitiveness which constitute the foundation of the Korean robotics industry. The country aims to strengthen strategic inter-company, international, and interregional cooperation for the robotics industry.
The statistical yearbook “World Robotics” by IFR lists Korea as the world´s number one adopter of industrial robots with 1,012 robots per 10,000 employees. Robot density has increased by 5% on average each year since 2018.
Horizon Europe is the European Union’s key research and innovation framework program. The budget is set of USD 100 billion (EUR 95.5 billion) and runs until 2027. Top targets are: strengthening the EU’s scientific and technological bases, boosting Europe’s innovation capacity and competitiveness. The European Commission provides total funding of USD 183.5 million (EUR 174 million) for the robotics-related work program 2023-2025 that was partly updated in April 2024. The focus is on industrial leadership in AI, data and robotics, clean energy transition and innovative health initiatives, to name but a few.
According to IFR’s “World Robotics” statistics, the European Union has a robot density of 219 units per 10,000 workers, with Germany, Sweden, Denmark and Slovenia in the world’s top ten.
Germany´s R&D and innovation program “High-Tech Strategy 2025 (HTS)” runs until 2026 with a total budget set to USD 369.2 million (EUR 350 million). The “Robotics research action plan” shall support the cross-connection of research centers as “Robotics Institute Germany”, support skilled labor and bring robotics research results into application.
According to the report “World Robotics” by IFR, Germany is the largest robot market in Europe – the robot density ranks fourth worldwide with 429 robots per 10,000 employees.
Robotics R&D programs managed by the United States include basic research on Intelligent Robotics and Autonomous Systems by the National Science Foundation (NSF), “Space Robotics” by the NASA and “Military Robotics and Autonomous Vehicles” by the Department of Defense (DoD). Following the Mars exploration program, NASA has launched the Artemis project to send astronauts to the surface of the moon and to develop promising capabilities for Mars missions after 2024. The total budget for Artemis is USD 53 billion for fiscal years 2021-2025. The NSF’s research programs support the development and use of robotics in workplaces, hospitals, communities, and homes. The budget requested for 2024 is around USD 70 million. The DoD‘s 2023 budget includes USD 10.3 billion for autonomy and robotics technologies.
The statistical yearbook “World Robotics” by IFR shows that robot density in the United States hit 295 units in 2024. The country ranks tenth in the world. Regarding annual installations of industrial robots, the USA takes third position.