Will robots take over jobs? Over 4 million machines now working in factories worldwide

According to the World Robotics Report, over 70% of recently deployed robots were located in Asia, 17% in Europe, and 10% in the Americas, primarily the United States.

In some of the countries that have spearheaded the automation effort, there was a pause last year following a quick post-pandemic comeback, the research states. China deployed 5% fewer industrial robots annually in 2022 than it did in 2022, but the nation still accounted for the majority of newly installed industrial robots worldwide. (Also Read: Google’s AI robot shows off impressive table tennis skills against human players. Watch)

In the US, efforts to reshore production have led to a pickup in installations during the past few years, though the number for 2023 was slightly down from the prior year — as it also was in Japan and Korea.

Germany was the only one of the top five automation countries where robot installations accelerated last year compared with 2022. The second- and third-biggest European markets, Italy and France, both posted declines.

“The war in Ukraine, tight monetary policy and the relative weakness of the European automotive industry compared to China’s are dampening investment,” the report said.

Even countries with very deep pools of labor are turning to robots. Installations in India increased by 59% to a record 8,510 units last year, led by demand from the automotive industry. (Also Read: AI dating no longer a far-fetched reality, thanks to this Japanese startup. All you need to know)

The country’s stock of robots “has almost doubled since 2018,” said Marina Bill, president of the International Federation of Robotics. “India is one of the strongest growing economies among the Asian emerging markets.”