“Adoption in this sector surged by 30 percent, now ranking alongside metal and machinery and electrical-electronics, all with approximately 3,000 installations in 2025,” adds Ito, who also serves as chief technical advisor at Fanuc Corp. 

The degree of automation in the U.S., as measured by robot density, stands at 307 industrial robots in use for every 10,000 employees in the manufacturing industry. This places the U.S. in 8th position worldwide (two ranks up from the previous year) behind top automated countries such as South Korea (1,220 robots), Germany (449 robots) and Japan (446 robots), but ahead of China (166 robots).

North America’s largest automation trade association, A3, has presented a "Vision for a National Robotics Strategy" to lawmakers in Washington. It advocates a framework for a federal robotics office and a national commission to coordinate policy, with the aim of harmonizing government research and fostering public-private partnerships.

“The proposed national strategy also calls for market-driven tax incentives, expanded technical workforce retraining, updated safety standards, and a federal mandate to purchase domestic robotics technology to accelerate commercial deployment,” says Ito.

“[However], the industrial modernization outlook in North America remains highly positive,” claims Ito. “This is driven by accelerating factory reshoring initiatives and a persistent shortage of skilled labor.”

Ito predicts a long-term growth trajectory for the region's automation sector, as manufacturers increase investments to mitigate structural workforce gaps.