The production of industrial robots is accelerating globally. Factories worldwide installed 542,000 industrial robots in 2024, more than double the number installed a decade earlier. Asia accounted for 74 percent of new deployments. Europe followed at 16 percent, while North America was at just 9 percent, a share that has declined relative to global growth.
The U.S. automotive sector is the largest user of industrial robots in the country and is a key proving ground for advanced transportation technologies. It sits at the center of a transition with consequences for economic productivity, technological innovation and national security.
Yet, the systems running on American assembly lines today are not being manufactured in the United States, and China is on a deliberate path to displace allied suppliers, using the same playbook it used in multiple industries like batteries, solar panels, and critical minerals and materials.
The Coalition for Reimagined Mobility’s issue brief explores:
- The rise of industrial robots and why they will define the future of manufacturing
- The countries building and installing industrial robots
- China’s physical AI dominance and cybersecurity challenges for manufacturers
- China’s vertically integrated industrial robotics supply chain
- National security risks of China’s industrial robotics stronghold
