Record-High 4 Million Robots in Factories Worldwide

Annual installations of robots exceeded 500,000 units for the third consecutive year.

FRANKFURT, Germany—More than 4.2 million robots were employed in factories worldwide in 2023—a record high and an increase of 10 percent from 2022.

Specifically, 4,281,585 robots were operating in factories last year, according to the latest World Robotics Report from the International Federation of Robotics. Annual installations of robots exceeded 500,000 units for the third consecutive year. By region, 70 percent of all newly deployed robots in 2023 were installed in Asia, 17 percent in Europe and 10 percent in the Americas.

“The new statistics show an all-time high in the number of industrial robots automating production around the world,” says Marina Bill, IFR president and group vice president for robotics and discrete automation at ABB Inc. “The annual installation figure of 541,302 units in 2023 is the second highest in history. It is only 2 percent lower than the record of 552,946 units installed in 2022.”

China is by far the world’s largest market. The 276,288 robots installed in 2023 represent 51 percent of all installations worldwide. This result is the second highest level ever recorded.

The share of Chinese manufacturers in the domestic market has grown considerably since 2022, reaching 47 percent in 2023. It has fluctuated around 28 percent over the past decade. The operational stock was just shy of the 1.8 million unit mark in 2023, making China the first and only country in the world with such a large robot stock.

Demand for robots is expected to accelerate in the second half of 2024, contributing to a more stable market by the end of the year. In the longer term, there is still a lot of growth potential in Chinese manufacturing, with the potential for 5 to 10 percent average annual growth until 2027.

Japan remained the second largest global market for robots. Robot installations reached 46,106 units in 2023, down 9 percent. Demand for robots is expected to remain stagnant in 2024, but recover in 2025 and the following years to medium and upper single-digit rates.

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The market in the Republic of Korea is trending sideways: Installations reached 31,444 units in 2023, down 1 percent year on year. The country was the fourth largest robot market in the world in terms of annual installations, after the United States, Japan and China.

India is one of the fastest growing emerging Asian economies. Robot installations increased by 59 percent to 8,510 units in 2023, a new high. Demand from the automotive industry soared to 3,551 units, an increase of 139 percent.

Robot installations in Europe rose 9 percent to a new high of 92,393 units. Delayed projects were completed, and an order backlog was cleared. Robot demand in the region also benefited from the nearshoring trend. In 2023, growth was strongly driven by the automotive industry investing in traditionally strong car-manufacturing countries, such as Spain, but also in smaller markets such as Slovakia and Hungary.

Installations in Germany, the largest European market and the only European one in the global top five, were up 7 percent to 28,355 units. Installations in the second largest European market, Italy, declined by 9 percent to 10,412 units. The third largest European market, France, was down 13 percent, installing 6,386 units.

Robot installations in the Americas exceeded 50,000 units for the third year in a row. Some 55,389 units were installed in 2023, just 1 percent below the record level reached 2022.

The United States, the largest regional market, accounted for 68 percent of installations in the Americas in 2023. Robot installations were down by 5 percent to 37,587, but that figure is still the third highest record figure after 2022 and 2018. Demand from the automotive industry was down, but installations in the metal and machinery industries were up. Installations in the electrical and electronics industry remained steady.

In Canada, robot installations rose 37 percent to 4,311 units, predominantly due to the country’s automotive industry.

Robot demand in Mexico is driven by the automotive industry, which accounts for 70 percent of the market. Total installations reached 5,832 units in 2023, a decrease of 3 percent.

The Office of Economic Cooperation and Development expects global growth to stabilize. However, geopolitical headwinds are still perceived as a major risk. Recent crises have raised political awareness of domestic production capacity in strategic industries. Automation allows manufacturers to locate production in developed economies without sacrificing cost efficiency. By 2024, the global economic downturn will have bottomed out. Global robot installations are expected to level off at 541,000 units. Growth is expected to accelerate in 2025 and continue in 2026 and 2027.